Interested in taking a deep dive into the biblical text? Join host Dr. Kim Riddlebarger for each episode of the Blessed Hope Podcast as we explore the Letters of the Apostle Paul. In each episode, we work our way through Paul’s letters, focusing upon Paul’s life and times, the gospel he preaches, the law/gospel distinction, the doctrine of justification sola fide, Paul’s two-age eschatology, and a whole lot more. So get out your Bible and join us! Oh, and expect a few bad jokes and surprise ...
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"Fashion, Style, and Properiety in Worship" Season Three/Episode Nineteen (1 Corinthians 11:2-16)
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Episode Synopsis: As a cosmopolitan city and home to many varieties of Greco-Roman paganism, Corinth was a cutting edge place for first century fashion and culture. From what we know regarding the city’s ethos at the time, there was growing tension between traditional gender roles and a desire for women to express themselves in non-traditional ways…
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"The Bread, The Wine, and the Glory of God" Season Three/Episode Eighteen (1 Corinthians 10:14-11:1)
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Episode Synopsis: We’ve come to 1 Corinthians 10:14-11:1, as Paul wraps up his discussion of idolatry. In the sacrament of the Lord’s Supper, Christian believers drink the cup of blessing and eat the broken bread–described by Paul as a participation in Christ’s body and blood. Since so many in Corinth were still hanging on to remnants of their paga…
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Episode Synopsis: If you have ever wondered what it would be like for Paul to teach you how to read and understand the Old Testament in light of the coming of Jesus Christ, in 1 Corinthians 10:1-13, the apostle does exactly that. The birth of Israel stems from deliverance from their bondage in Egypt, followed by the Passover, and then the Exodus th…
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Episode Synopsis: If we were to find Paul’s notes for an upcoming lecture on “my philosophy of ministry,” we would probably find the words of 1 Corinthians 9:19–23, "For though I am free from all, I have made myself a servant to all, that I might win more of them. To the Jews I became as a Jew, in order to win Jews. To those under the law I became …
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Episode Synopsis: The church in Corinth was plagued by factions. One source of division was ethnicity–the church was made up of Jews, Greeks, Romans, and likely a number of other nationalities. Then there were the factions formed by church members who identified with Paul, Peter, or Apollos, as their favorite teachers. There were also deep cultural…
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"You Can't Unscramble Eggs" Season Three/Episode Fourteen (1 Corinthians 7:17-40)
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Episode Synopsis: In 1 Corinthians 7:17-40, Paul teaches what I call the “you can’t unscramble eggs” doctrine. What should a new Christian do when they come to faith in Jesus Christ? Do they quit their current “secular” job to devote themselves full-time to Jesus Christ and to the work of ministry? Should they rush into marriage to avoid the lusts …
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“Mixed Marriages, `Holy’ Spouses and Children” Season Three/Episode Thirteen (1 Corinthians 7:12-16)
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Episode Synopsis: Paul’s Gentile mission was a huge success. A number of new churches were established throughout the eastern Mediterranean world–including fast growing churches in important cities such as Corinth, Thessalonica, and Ephesus. But with the spread of the gospel into a previously unevangelized world dominated by Greco-Roman culture and…
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Episode Synopsis: Sex and marriage were pressing issues in Corinth. Gentiles who came to faith in Jesus Christ during Paul’s Gentile mission were learning the biblical sexual ethic for the first time. Grounded in the creation order, the Ten Commandments, and the teaching of Jesus, it did not take long for the Corinthians to understand that sex was …
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Episode Synopsis: It has been said that prostitution is the world’s old profession. In reality, tending a garden and naming animals is. But if you lived in first century Corinth you lived in a city well-known for its prostitutes and rampant sexual immorality. This creates a difficult situation for Christians who live there and who have been taught …
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Episode Synopsis: Corinth was a booming city with lots of new money and great stress upon the power and prestige that goes with it. One way to enhance your public image was to take advantage of those who had something you wanted or needed, or to shame a rival or get a leg up on someone you didn’t like, was to sue them in civil court. Corinth was a …
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Episode Synopsis: When passing through Ephesus, where Paul was living at the time, members of Chloe’s family informed Paul of a situation in the Corinthian church of such a serious nature that Paul is taken aback. A man in the Corinthian church (presumably known to the church but unnamed by Paul) is cohabiting with his father’s wife. Such conduct w…
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Episode Synopsis: Paul expressed a fair bit of righteous anger in his letter to the Galatians–calling those taken in by false teachers foolish people who have been all-too easily bewitched by false teachers. In 1 Corinthians 4, the apostle again expresses his frustration, speaking sarcastically of those who think of themselves as rich (when they ar…
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"You Are God's Temple" Season Three/Episode Seven (1 Corinthians 3:1-23)
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Episode Synopsis: So what will it be? Milk or meat? Are the Corinthians spiritual toddlers? Or are they mature Christians? Since they are being drawn to the factions forming within the church (“I follow Paul,” “I follow Apollos”) it is clear that no matter how mature they think they are, in reality they are immature. Their lack of progress in Chris…
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"Preaching as a Demonstration of the Spirit's Power" Season Three/Episode Six (1 Corinthians 2:1-16)
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Episode Synopsis: Paul did not come to Corinth as a typical sage, sophist, or philosopher. He was an unimpressive rabbi and made no attempt to embrace Greco-Roman rhetorical techniques to keep an audience entertained and wanting more. Paul’s mission to the Gentiles was not about him, it was about the message he preached, Christ and him crucified. W…
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"Christ and Him Crucified" Season Three/Episode Five (1 Corinthians 1:18-31)
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Episode Synopsis: The cross of Jesus Christ is utter foolishness to those who are perishing in their sins. Yet, Paul tells the Corinthians that through message of the cross God reveals his wisdom and power. In the closing section of the first chapter of his first Corinthian letter, Paul explains how and why the preaching of Christ crucified confoun…
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Episode Synopsis: Paul has gotten some rather bad news. Members of Chloe’s family (presumably people Paul had known from his time in Corinth) had come to Ephesus (where Paul was currently laboring). They informed him of serious troubles back in Corinth. People were quarreling to the point that factions had developed in the church, with various grou…
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Episode Synopsis: In the opening 9 verses of Paul’s first Corinthian letter, Paul sets the stage for what is to come. Although he was in Corinth for some eighteen months and knew many of those to whom he is writing quite well, his apostolic authority was being challenged by some in the congregation. Paul must address this matter by reminding the Co…
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"A Rich Feast of Pauline Theology" Season Three/Episode Two -- 1 Corinthians (Doctrinal Survey)
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Episode Synopsis: Paul’s first Corinthian letter was written to deal with divisions in the Corinthian church. He’s received a letter from the Corinthians asking him about how to deal with the Greco-Roman pagans around them, as well as how to handle professing Christians who either did not understand, or implement the apostle’s instructions. In Ephe…
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"What Happens in Corinth Does Not Stay in Corinth" Season Three/Episode One -- 1 Corinthians (Introduction)
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Episode Synopsis: I’m very excited to kick off season three of the Blessed Hope Podcast because we are taking up one of the most interesting and challenging letters in all the New Testament–Paul’s first letter to the Corinthians. This is a letter which is practical in the best sense of the term and we will spend a great deal of time going through i…
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Eschatology by Ethos (8-40): Why Optimism and Pessimism Do Not Work as Eschatological Categories
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Episode Synopsis: The first time I heard the term “optimistic amillennarian” was in seminary, when a student asked one of the professors whether they were postmillennial or amillennial. The professor said he admired much about postmillennialism, but thought amillennialism was the biblical view. But after saying that, he blurted out, “well, maybe, I…
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Episode Synopsis: The mere mention of the Antichrist conjures up all kinds of spooky movie images, demonic plot lines, and eerie special effects–all designed to play upon our fears of a satanically inspired, menacing figure doing their master’s bidding. The list is long, but a few examples should help–The Omen (with the brat antichrist child, Damie…
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The Future of Israel (6-38) -- A Look at Romans 9-11
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Episode Synopsis: Whenever you discuss biblical eschatology and the end times, you must address the future of Israel and the Jewish people. The subject is greatly complicated by the fact that along with the longstanding biblical debates over Israel’s future, there is also the complicated history of Zionism. The unprecedented events surrounding the …
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The Future (5-37) -- The Signs of the End
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Episode Synopsis: From the moment of our Lord’s ascension into heaven (as recounted in Acts 1:8) Christians have expected the Lord’s bodily and imminent return. Both Jesus and the apostles had a fair bit to say about his return as well as those signs which would precede the end. So, from the dawn of the church, until now, some two thousand years re…
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Episode Synopsis: I am not a fan of jigsaw puzzles–I don’t have the patience to put them together, and I am too easily distracted by the shapes of the various pieces. So, I lose sight of the big picture, and then I get frustrated and attempt to jam pieces into the puzzle where they don’t fit. Many people have the same trouble with the Bible. Why do…
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The Future (3-35) -- The Returning King and His Kingdom
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Episode Synopsis: The kingdom of God is a major topic throughout the Scriptures. The kingdom of God refers to the rule or reign of God over all of creation and all of its creatures. The Old Testament speaks of YHWH as Israel’s king, whose kingdom is everlasting. The prophets speak of this kingdom using royal images associated with heavenly glory an…
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Episode Synopsis: I begin this episode with a personal testimony. I was born and raised a dispensationalist. Our family owned a Christian bookstore. The first Christian book I picked out and read on my own was Hal Lindsey’s The Late Great Planet Earth. Years later, I was challenged by one of our delivery men about the books we were selling–all the …
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Episode Synopsis: We are beginning a new series on the Blessed Hope Podcast, “The Future.” In this series we will wrestle with the question “what does the future hold for God’s people?” What historical events and biblical prophecies remain to be fulfilled before Jesus returns on the last day? How are we to interpret the various signs of the end we …
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Season Two Postscript – Where Do We Go from Here? We’ve completed season two of the Blessed Hope Podcast, fifteen episodes in all, in which we covered Paul’s two Thessalonian letters. The season two series was entitled “when the Lord Jesus is revealed from heaven, taken from 2 Thessalonians 1:7, a text which captures Paul emphasis in these two lett…
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Paul's Thessalonian Letters -- Season Two/Episode Fifteen “The Lord Is Faithful” -- (2 Thessalonians 2:13-3:18)
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Episode Synopsis: As Paul comes to the end of his second Thessalonian letter, he still has much to say to the Christians in Thessalonica. But the most important thing the apostle does when concluding his second letter, is to remind the Thessalonians of his prayer of thanksgiving on their behalf. Paul hopes this will be of great encouragement. The a…
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Paul's Thessalonian Letters -- Season Two/Episode Fourteen: “The Man of Sin” -- Part Two (2 Thessalonians 2:1-12)
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Episode Synopsis: Soon after Paul sent his first letter to the Thessalonian Christians, the apostle received word that someone in the congregation was teaching that the day of the Lord had already come. Composing his second Thessalonian letter to correct this error, Paul makes it abundantly clear that anyone spreading such a rumor is flat-out wrong…
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Paul's Thessalonian Letters -- Season Two/Episode Thirteen: “The Man of Sin” -- Part One (2 Thessalonians 2:1-12)
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Episode Synopsis: There is little doubt that one of the most interesting, controversial, and a constant source of on-going speculation is the doctrine of the Antichrist. Indeed, there has been so much written about the Antichrist by Christians–both ancient and modern–and so many references made to the Antichrist in film and popular culture, it is v…
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Paul's Thessalonian Letters -- Season Two/Episode Twelve: “When the Lord Jesus Is Revealed from Heaven” (2 Thessalonians:1-12)
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Episode Synopsis: Paul has already written one letter to the Thessalonians to clear up the confusion in their midst about the Lord’s return on the last day. Paul has instructed the congregation that should anyone die before the Lord’s return, they will not miss out on any of the benefits secured for them by Jesus Christ (including eternal life) as …
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Paul's Thessalonian Letters -- Season Two/Episode Eleven: "Brothers, I Urge You" (1 Thess. 5:12-28)
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Episode Synopsis: Since the Lord will return suddenly and unexpectedly, what are the Thessalonians to do until Jesus’s return? Paul has already encouraged them earlier in his letter, telling them that they are doing well despite the persecution and on-going threats they were receiving from Jews and Greco-Roman pagans in Thessalonica. But Paul knows…
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Paul's Thessalonian Letters -- Season Two/Episode Ten: "Like a Thief in the Night" (1 Thess. 5:1-11)
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Date-setting has been a problem for God’s people since the days of the apostles. Church history is full of the accounts of those who, for whatever reason, attempted to figure out when Jesus will return, set dates, and then miserably failed to predict the unpredictable. Two recent examples should suffice. Edgar C. Whisenant predicted the Lord’s retu…
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Episode Synopsis: As a baby boomer, I grew up during the Cold War, when the threat of nuclear war was real and constant. In 1948, Israel became a nation and many Jews began returning to their ancient homeland. The “Six Day War” of 1967, fought between Israel and a confederation of Arab states, sure made it seem as though the dispensational expectat…
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Paul's Thessalonian Letters -- Season Two/Episode Eight: "The Coming of the Lord" (1 Thess 4:13-18)
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Episode Synopsis: The greatest event in all of human history was the death and resurrection of Jesus Christ. The most hoped for event in humanity’s future is Jesus Christ’s return when he will raise the dead, judge the world, and bring about the new creation. Since the moment Jesus Christ ascended into heaven and the attending angels told his disci…
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Paul's Thessalonian Letters -- Season Two/Episode Seven: "This Is the Will of God: Paul on Sexual Purity" (1 Thess 4:1-2)
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Episode Synopsis: In chapter four of his first Thessalonian letter, Paul addresses the issues surrounding what it means to turn from idols to serve the true and living God. Paul is concerned with how these new Christians in Thessalonica “walk in the Lord” – that is, how they ought to live the Christian life in contrast to the way they lived before …
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Paul's Thessalonian Letters -- Season Two/Episode Six: "Satan's Opposition, The Lord's Parousia, and the Persecution of the Faithful" (1 Thess 2:17-3:13)
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Episode Synopsis: Paul was forced out of Thessalonica after three short weeks among them. Paul truly desires to return (he’s writing to the Thessalonians from Corinth) but so far has been prevented from doing so. Paul attributes this unfortunate circumstance to the activity of Satan and so explains why he sent Timothy instead of coming in person. P…
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Paul's Thessalonian Letters -- Season Two/Episode Five: “Labor and Toil, Calling and Kingdom, Hindering the Gospel” (1 Thess 2:1-16)
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Episode Synopsis: In chapter two of Paul’s first Thessalonian letter, Paul defends himself against accusations raised by those who had driven him from the city. Paul is not just another itinerant philosopher who wanders throughout the land seeking to tickle ears and gain a following. Paul’s conduct in Thessalonica was blameless and it should be cle…
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Paul's Thessalonian Letters -- Season Two/Episode Four: "Deliverance from the Wrath to Come" (1 Thess 1:9-10)
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Episode Synopsis: There is one thing a congregation dislikes even more than stewardship Sunday–a sermon on the wrath of God. To proclaim that the wrath of God is coming upon the whole world (and it is) is be thought of as some sort of fundamentalist with the misguided faith of a snake-handler, or the mind-set of a Jihadi terrorist. Any one who beli…
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Paul's Thessalonian Letters -- Season Two/Episode Three: "The Church as the Renewed Israel" (1 Thess 1:1-8)
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Synopsis of Episode Three: In the opening verses of his first Thessalonian letter, Paul sends warm greetings to those from whom he has recently departed. This departure was not of his own doing. After spending three Sabbaths in Thessalonica with this newly organized church, Paul was driven from the city by a “rentamob” organized by Jews in the city…
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Paul's Thessalonian Letters -- Season Two/Episode Two: "Paul's Theological Categories"
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Synopsis of Episode Two: “Paul’s Theological Categories” Paul was converted about 33 AD when Jesus appeared to him on the Damascus Road, revealing to Paul the content of the gospel he was to preach. Paul’s first letter to the Thessalonians was written around 50 AD, just short of twenty years after his conversion. By this time, Paul has a settled th…
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Paul's Thessalonian Letters -- Season Two/Episode One: "Introduction to the Thessalonian Letters"
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Synopsis of Episode One: “An Introduction to Paul’s Thessalonian Letters” We are about to embark on a study of Paul’s Thessalonian letters. Our season two series is entitled “when the Lord Jesus is revealed from heaven" (from 2 Thessalonians 1:7), a text which captures Paul emphasis in these two letters upon the key event in biblical eschatology — …
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In this special episode of Season One on the Book of Galatians, I am offering listeners a free gift! If you have made it through all fourteen episodes of the Blessed Hope series on the Book of Galatians, I am making available to you a free expositional commentary on the Book of Galatians, entitled, “For Freedom!” Instructions and conditions for dow…
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We’ve completed our fourteen-part series on the Book of Galatians. But one question remains unanswered. What happened after Paul sent his letter to the churches in Galatia? In Acts 15, we get our answer. The Judaizing heresy became an issue of concern far beyond Galatia. In response, the Apostles and elders of the Jerusalem church convene a church …
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The Book of Galatians -- Episode Fourteen: "Boasting in the Cross of Christ" (Galatians 6:11-18)
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In the first century Greco-Roman world crucifixion was something that polite and well mannered people didn’t talk about. Considered a cruel instrument of torture and shame, nevertheless, the cross is the one thing about which the apostle Paul chooses to boast–not just any cross, but the cross of Jesus Christ, where the guilt and power of sin which …
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In the sixth and concluding chapter of Galatians, Paul addresses the fallout caused by the Judaizers spying on those throughout the region exercising their liberty in Christ. It should not come as a surprise that the Judaizers would find people engaging in sinful conduct, shame them, and use them as examples of why Paul’s gospel supposedly leads to…
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The Book of Galatians -- Episode Twelve: "The Works of the Flesh v. the Fruit of the Spirit” (Galatians 5:19-26)
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In the last half of Galatians 5, Paul contrasts the works of the flesh with the fruit of the Spirit. In comparing the two lists, it sounds very much like the Apostle is describing two warring factions–which he is, the flesh against the Spirit. The works of the flesh are the visible outcome of what it means to have a sinful nature. Because we are “f…
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In Galatians chapter 5, the apostle Paul is discussing how the Galatian Christians ought understand the implications of their freedom in Christ–especially in the face of pressure to return to works of law as insisted by the Judaizers. To help ensure that the Galatians stand firm against the legalistic error spreading quickly throughout the churches…
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The Book of Galatians -- Episode Ten: "It Is for Freedom Christ Has Set Us Free" (Galatians 5:1-12)
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Paul exhorts the Galatians, “for freedom Christ has set us free; stand firm therefore, and do not submit again to a yoke of slavery.” But this is an unlikely assertion for a well-known religious figure like the apostle Paul to make. Most people would expect Paul to shout something like, “try harder, do better, live a godly and good life. This is wh…
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