Class Notes: 4/11/2021

Smyrna, the pivot for SPQR part 29; The faith rest drill

https://youtu.be/6JDXCsiVd2U

Rom 1:20-24; For since the creation of the world His invisible attributes, His eternal power and divine nature, have been clearly seen, being understood through what has been made, so that they are without excuse.

21 For even though they knew God, they did not honor Him as God or give thanks, but they became futile in their speculations, and their foolish heart was darkened.
22 Professing to be wise, they became fools,

Rom 1:28; so since they did not see fit to acknowledge God any longer, God gave them over to a depraved mind, to do those things which are not proper.

Rom 1:29-32 (NET) They are filled with every kind of unrighteousness, wickedness, covetousness, malice. They are rife with envy, murder, strife, deceit, hostility. They are gossips,
30 slanderers, haters of God, insolent, arrogant, boastful, contrivers of all sorts of evil, disobedient to parents,

31 senseless, covenant-breakers, heartless, ruthless.
32 Although they fully know God's righteous decree that those who practice such things deserve to die, they not only do them but also approve of those who practice them.

2Tim 3 12-13; Indeed, all who desire to live godly in Christ Jesus will be persecuted.
Because evil men and impostors will proceed from bad to worse, deceiving and being deceived.

Amos 8:11-12; "Behold, days are coming," declares the Lord God, "When I will send a famine on the land, Not a famine for bread or a thirst for water, But rather for hearing the words of the Lord.

12 "People will stagger from sea to sea And from the north even to the east; They will go to and fro to seek the word of the Lord, But they will not find it.

Romans 1:18; For the wrath of God is revealed from heaven against all ungodliness and unrighteousness of men who suppress the truth in unrighteousness,

These people suppress the truth by turning doctrine in to liturgy that is ritual without reality. This is what the Jewish leadership did in Jesus day. Matt 15:19; They worship me in vain because they teach the precepts of men as doctrine.

This is occurring with the constitution when the president said last week the constitution is not absolute he was stating a precept of men. Their precept of men makes the constitution meaningless and useless and it shows. Everything they do destroys the country as founded.

We see God's response to this in 1Thess 5:3; While they are saying, "Peace and safety!" then destruction will come upon them suddenly like labor pains upon a woman with child, and they will not escape.

And while it is all going we are told in Eph 6:10-12; to be strong in the Lord and in His omnipotent power. 11 Put on the full armor of God, so that you will be able to stand firm against the schemes of the devil.

12 because our struggle is not against flesh and blood, but against the rulers, against the powers, against the world forces of this darkness, against the spiritual forces of wickedness in the heavenly places.

The leftist communist democrats who have stolen control over this country say they want unity but God's word states that there cannot be any unity until they agree with God rather than satan. Eph 4:13; until we all attain to the unity of the faith, and of the knowledge of the Son of God, to a mature man, to the measure of the stature which belongs to the fullness of Christ because God makes war against the arrogant. James 4:6;

God's Word tells us that apart from agreeing with God there must be division, factions and war. 1Cor 11:19; For there must also be factions among you, so that those who are approved among you may become evident.

Matt 24:6; "You will be hearing of wars and rumors of wars. See that you are not frightened, for those things must take place, but that is not yet the end.

In the midst of all of this Jesus provides us with His peace if we learn and believe the working objects from His Word of truth. John 14:27; "Peace I leave with you; My peace I give to you; not as the world gives do I give to you. Do not let your heart be distressed or lacking courage.

Phil 4:4-7; Rejoice in the Lord always; again I will say, rejoice! Let your gentle spirit be known to all men. The Lord is near.

6 Be anxious for nothing, but in everything by prayer and supplication with thanksgiving let your requests be made known to God. And the peace of God, which surpasses all comprehension, will guard your hearts and your minds in Christ Jesus.

I am therefore well content with weaknesses, with insults, with distresses, with persecutions, with difficulties, for Christ's sake; for when I am weak, then I am strong. 2Cor 12:10;

In our study on Smyrna, the base of the pivot power for the first gentile client nation SPQR. We are in Rev 2:10; that starts with the mandate "not to fear what you are about to suffer"

This took us to study that of the faith rest drill where last time we noted that problems cannot be solved with another problem. Believers occupied with their problems inevitably end up trying to solve a problem with another problem but believers who use God's problem solving devices actually solve the problem with doctrinal working objects.

Problems can only be really solved with a divine solution because the divine solution is the only solution. Divine solutions are the only solution; human solutions are no solution.

The decisions we make today determine our future options tomorrow. Making decisions in arrogance is reactionary because it attempts to address the consequences of the problem while ignoring the cause.

The root cause of every problem in the human race is one of the categories of death starting with spiritual and cosmic death for the unbeliever and carnal and cosmic death for the believer. Gen 2:17; Rom 8:6-13; Phil 1:29; Heb 9:27;

A victory won in arrogance is not a victory at all because before its finished the collateral damage from Divine discipline will be as bad or worse than no victory at all.

© Copyright 2024, Michael Lemmon Bible Ministries. World Rights Reserved.