1 John 2:7-11 - The Not-So-New Commandment

John writes in his epistle of a commandment which is not new, but on the other hand is new. It is as old as law itself and yet at the same time it is new. That law is love.

In this bible study we dig into these five verses and find more than just a reminder that we are supposed to love each other. What we find is a biblical theology. What we find is an explanation of what is wrong with the world, along with the good news of what Christ has done to make it right again.



Here’s an excerpt:

“And just as today, the dominant characteristics of the world are sin, darkness, and hate, so one day soon this will be a world completely flooded by obedience, light, and love. And Jesus was the invasion of all three. This is why the world hated him and rejected him. And this is why he will conquer.”

We live in a world ruled by hatred and we have been called out of it by love, and that is why love is to manifest itself in all our relationships in this world now. We live in the light and we are to walk as children of light.

Below you will find the audio recording of the bible study we had on these verses. These studies are informal and presented in a small group setting. I hope you will take the time to listen and that it will be a blessing to you. Just click the link below.


Click here: 1 John 2:7-11 - The Not-So-New Commandment


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Mark 10:13-16 - Children and the Kingdom

This account naturally follows that of the preceding section because children belong naturally to marriage. Having elevated the sanctity of marriage among his disciples he now seeks to elevate their view of the importance of children. So this is an easy transition from one subject to the other.

In our culture children are almost revered. We often plan our entire lives around them. You see this especially among younger parents. Their whole lives, often, will revolve around activities for their kids. We also idealize childhood and look at those years as the most important years of our lives. Modern psychology has added to our propensity to do this, delving deeply into the memories of childhood and the events that shaped us to try to ascertain why it is we behave the way we do now.

We sometimes opine that we want kids to stay young longer and don't want them to grow up too fast. Crimes against children are the worst of crimes because we view children, almost, as innocent, or even virtuous, just because of their age. Some of this, no doubt, is due to the fact that the older we get the more cynical we become (as adults) and the more hardened toward the realities of a hard world, and we long for the days when we were not yet too calloused to see the wonder around us and to dream. Childhood—it’s idyllic. Children—to be enjoyed, and envied. Grandchildren—who doesn’t want grandchildren around? And babies—is there anything better than holding an infant?

But this is all modern stuff. This is a product of the influence that Jesus has had on our western thinking—because it was not like that in ancient times. In the pagan cultures of Jesus’ day children had almost no status at all. In Jewish culture it was a little better, but not much. In large part, the status children enjoy today in western culture is due to stories like this from the gospels. If you want to know what changed and how it changed then you can look to Jesus. It is due to him that we have such high views of children now. In those days they were nobodies. They were ‘the least of these.’

So someone is bringing children to Jesus. Why? What is going on? How do the disciples react to this? And what does Jesus have to say to them about their reaction? And is their some deeper lesson underlying all of this? There usually is.

I invite you to take the time to listen to the audio recording of this sermon preached at our church a week or so ago. Just click the link below and a new window will open in your browser where you will find this sermon. You can stream it or download it for later listening. I hope you do. God bless.


Click here: Mark 10:13-16 - Children and the Kingdom


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1 John 2:3-6 - Faith, Obedience, and Love

How do I know I am in the faith? How do I know if I am truly saved? In this chapter John is going to give some outward, visible, tangible things for us to look at (tests, if you will) which will help us to know that we are genuinely in Christ. They have to do with the fruit of God’s grace being manifested in our lives. When John does this, he is looking at Christ’s work of redemption from an eschatological perspective. In other words, what is the end game? What is the work which Christ came to do, what will it look like when it is finally accomplished, and how will the manifest itself in us at this time?

If redemption is God’s work alone, and it is, then how do we know we are a part of it? What are we to look for as reassurance that we truly belong to him? In these verses that we cover in this bible study John begins to answer that. And the first evidence he points us to is obedience.

Whoever says “I know him” but does not keep his commandments is a liar, and the truth is not in him, 

By contrast, those who genuinely keep his commandments can be reassured that this is only due to a work of grace being done in them. Obedience is the fruit of genuine faith and an evidence of God’s grace at work. And just as genuine faith always produces obedience, the converse is true. There is no such thing as genuine obedience apart from faith.

But there is one other thing that is missing from this formula, and that is love. True love produces obedience. Where there is no obedience there is no love.

To listen to this bible study just click the link below.

Click here: 1 John 2:3-6 - Faith, Obedience, and Love


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Mark 10:1-12 - Jesus On Marriage And Divorce

This is the divorce sermon. I dreaded it for months and I probably did more preparation for this sermon than for any other sermon I have ever preached. I started months ahead of time ordering two books and reading them both before even attempting to preach this passage.

The first of those books was this one by Jay Adams: Marriage, Divorce, and Remarriage In the Bible

The second was by David Instone-Brewer: Divorce and Remarriage In the Bible—The Social and Literary Context

Although the two authors will disagree slightly on the grounds for a divorce, I highly recommend both. For what it’s worth, Adams is a Presbyterian and Brewer is a Baptist.



This is a controversial topic and the Scripture is not always as clear as we would like it to be. I tried my best to do justice to the passage and to look at it in the light of all the other passages of Scripture that speak to this topic. I hope what I gave is a balanced approach that glorified Christ and the gospel, and elevated marriage in the way that Jesus intended. I hope also that I was able to hold a high standard and yet extend grace to all. You be the judge.

The sermon is about 35 minutes in length. As in all things, listen with discernment and be open to what the Scripture says. You can listen by clicking below. Soli Deo Gloria.


Click here: Mark 10:1-12 - Jesus On Marriage and Divorce


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1 John 2:2 - Propitiation Part 2

This is a continuation of our look at this verse and its impact on the reformed doctrine of the cross and what Christ accomplished there—in other words the meaning and extent of the atonement. At that time I proposed that there were five possible ways that this verse could be understood.

He is the propitiation for our sins, and not for ours only but also for the sins of the whole world.—1 John 2:2

This is what I proposed. Either:

(1) Jesus is the propitiation for every sin of every human being who ever lived, or

(2) Jesus is the propitiation for some of the sins of every human being who ever lived, or

(3) Jesus is the (potential) propitiation for every single sin of every human being who ever lived, or

(4) Jesus is the propitiation for every sin of not every single person who ever lived, or

(5) Jesus is the propitiation for every sin of his people and the cosmos.

What we do then is look at the verse in depth, considering each word and its usage in the over-all context of the New Testament and the history of redemption going back all the way to the proto-evangelion in Genesis 3. Then we try to answer the question I proposed in light of what we’ve learned.

Which of the five proposed meanings I land on I will let you discover on your own, but if you listen to the audio you will learn that and also why I did so. I hope you will take the time to do that. Jut click the link below. God bless you.



Click here: 1 John 2:2 - Propitiation Part 2


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Mark 9:42-50 - The Salt Life

As we come to the end of chapter 9 we are still inside Peter and Andrew’s house in Capernaum. Jesus is sitting with the disciples gathered round and he is teaching them. As the session winds down Jesus hasn’t some rather shocking things to say. He talks about hanging millstones around necks and drowning people in the sea. He talks about cutting off hands and feet and plucking out eyes. Most frightening of all he speaks about Hell in terms of fire that will not be quenched and worms that do not die. What does it all mean?

In this sermon I tackle these tough verses. I unpack them and open them up so that we modern readers can better understand what Jesus is saying and the importance of it. And what Jesus is teaching here is definitely important.

Remember where we are in Mark’s narrative. Jesus and the disciples are on their way to Jerusalem to die. Well, Jesus is going to die. The disciples have been told to be ready. They have been called to give up their lives for him already. And what he is telling them here is that eternity is at stake. Their souls are at stake. Is there anything that would hinder them from following him until the end? Then whatever it is they are better off without it. It’s time to take inventory. 

Here is an excerpt:

“This world is dying. It is passing away. It is marked by death and will end in death. But Christ has entered this world of death to die, and through that death to bring about a world of life, where death will reign no more, but life--eternal life. That world, that kingdom, that life, is entered through Christ. We enter life through dying to self and living to Christ. Our death is wrapped up in his death and our life in his resurrection. This is the message of Christ. This is the gospel!

And this is the message of Jesus’ words here. Don't let anything keep you from that life, that kingdom, that eternal life that is found in and founded upon Jesus Christ. This world is passing away. Don't get caught up in it. Don't let its cares keep you down, keep you back. Nothing in this life is worth holding onto.”

The sermon is about 35 minutes long and you will find it at the link below. I hope you will click and listen. God bless.

Click here: Mark 9:42-50 - The Salt Life


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1 John 2:1-2 Propitiation Part 1

The extent of the atonement is a controversial topic within the evangelical community, though not within the reformed tradition. What the reformed tradition focuses on is not so much the question of ‘for whom did Christ die,’ but rather ‘what did he do for them?’ This passage of Scripture touches on both and we make the case that the former question can only be answered properly once we obtain the answer to the latter.

What I did in this bible study is try to put into the context of the book (1 John) what John is saying in these two verses. It took two lessons to cover. In this first one we connect verse 1 to the arguments John is making at the end of chapter 1 and then we talk about such concepts as antinomianism and what John means when he says that we have an Advocate with the Father. Will we sin as Christians? Is that okay? What happens when we do? Has God made provision for this? Do we have someone to help us?



Then we begin to take a look at the word ‘propitiation,’ how it was used in the Greek language, how it was used elsewhere in the Bible, and how it is onnected to the Old Testament. We end by discussing the holy place and the day of atonement, otherwise known as Yom Kippur. How did that point to Christ and what does it have to teach us about what Christ did at the cross?

Two-thirds of the way through this study we ran into some technical difficulties with the audio so you may notice a change in background noise during a quotation from one of the Psalms. As a whole you should be fine, however, and I hope you will take the time to listen. Just click the link below.


Click here: 1 John 2:1-2 - Propitiation Part 1


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