Month: February 2023

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In Remembrance (Part 1) – The Bread

During the last supper, Jesus gathered with his disciples and shared bread and wine with them in a very significant way. He declared that the bread represented his body and the cup of wine his blood. This meal was not just a one time event but something Jesus commanded his disciples to do often. We welcome Nick to this episode to discuss his in-depth studies on the symbolism involved and what it means for our lives.

Study aids

Bread & Wine Parallel Records Handout

Bread & Wine Summary Handout

Key verse

“And he took bread, and when he had given thanks, he broke it and gave it to them, saying, “This is my body, which is given for you. Do this in remembrance of me.””
Luke 22:19

How did it begin?

Night before Jesus died, upper room Matt 26:26-30 (also recorded in Mark 14, and Luke 22)


Why the bread and wine?

Luke 22:19, 1 Cor 11:24,25 “Do this in remembrance of me” and 1 Cor. 11:26 “to proclaim the Lord’s death.”

Jesus was known for this (Luke 24:35)

The believers continued in this Acts 2:42, when and how often? Acts 20:7

What does it mean?

Bread in scripture is a symbol of food, and is seen as the fundamentals for life. As such it became a symbol of man’s labour to produce food.  Gen 3:19; John 6:26-27         

Christ took this bread, he broke it and said this my body which is given for you, this do in remembrance of me. He wanted the disciples to remember how he lived his life in giving himself for others.

Christ just demonstrated this literally as he washed their feet (still stuck in their minds John 13:15-17)

Symbol of body

Christ said “this is my body”

Represents a body of believers 1 Cor 10:16-17;  1 Cor 12 (beautiful analogy of a group of believers working together as one body) ends with v27

Taking of the bread we therefore examine ourselves (1 Cor. 11:28), how we are helping the body of Christ (1 Cor. 11:29)

Fellowship

Conclusion of self examination (1 Cor. 11:28) – we are all sinners

Thereby have fellowship as realizing the need to work together 1 Cor 10:16-17

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Hell (Part 2) – The Unquenchable Fire

A discussion on hell would not be complete without talking about fire. Why are hell and fire connected? Josh and Tim continue the discussion from last week by talking about the word for hellfire Gehenna and why Jesus warned about this unquenchable fire.

Key Verse: “Do not fear those who kill the body but cannot kill the soul. Rather fear him who can destroy both soul and body in hell.” (Matthew 10:28 ESV)

Part 1 – Not Abandoned to Hades

  1. Introduction
    1. Popular ideas of hell fire
    2. Overview of the words for “hell” – Sheol, Hades and Gehenna
  2. Definition and Location
    1. Gehenna = Valley of Hinnom
    2. Bible Dictionary entries
  3. History in Old Testament
    1. Valley SW of Jerusalem (Josh. 15:8)
    2. Place where idolaters made their children pass through the fire (Ahaz 2 Chr. 28:3; Manasseh 2 Chron. 33:6). Defiled by King Josiah (2 Kings 23:10).
    3. Becomes symbolic of place of judgment (Jer. 7:31-32; Isa. 30:30,33)
  4. New Testament
    1. Mark 9:47 – Place of final judgement.
      1. Jesus quoting from Isa. 66:24, 15-16.
      2. Is this literal? Cutting off the hands/feet, worms living forever.
    2. Jude 7 – The unquenchable fire means nobody can put it out until it has completely destroyed (cp. Jer. 17:27; Mal. 4:1)
    3. Matt. 18:8 – The everlasting fire means the effects will be forever (cp. 2 Thess. 1:9; Mal. 4:1)
    4. Matt. 10:28 – Complete destruction
    5. Rev. 20:14 – The lake of fire
  5. Final conclusion
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Hell (Part 1) – Not Abandoned to Hades

In this episode Josh and Tim tackle the subject of hell. There are a lot of misconceptions about hell that a simple study like this will dispel. While it might not seem like a very positive subject, in the end, there is a message of hope that is very powerful.

Key Verse: “Therefore my heart was glad, and my tongue rejoiced; my flesh also will dwell in hope. For you will not abandon my soul to Hades, or let your Holy One see corruption.” Act 2:26-27 

Study Help: Every passage with Hell as Sheol or Hades

  1. Introduction
    1. Confusion over the word “hell”
    2. Reminder of past episodes that serve as a basis for this study
      1. We Shall Not All Sleep
      2. The Parable of the Rich Man and Lazarus
      3. The Creation of Man … First Natural, Then Spiritual
    3. Overview of the words for “hell” – Sheol, Hades and Gehenna
    4. To translate or transliterate?
  2. The OT Sheol
    1. A place for all the dead
      1. Gen. 37:35 – 1st occurrence. Jacob’s expectation to be there.
      2. Psa. 89:47-48 (NET) – Everybody dies, the power of Sheol
      3. 1 Sam. 2:6 – Hannah’s hope in the resurrection
    2. Descriptions of Sheol
      1. Psa. 6:5 (Isa. 38:18) – No praise of God
      2. Job 17:13-16 – place of darkness, corruption, worms and dust
      3. Ecc. 9:10 – No work or thought
      4. Isa. 14 / Ezek. 32 – Not to be taken literally
  3. Transition to the NT
    1. Acts 2:27,31 / Psa. 16:10 – The connection with Jesus
    2. Rev. 1:18 (cp. Zech. 9:11) – How Jesus overcame and has the keys to overcome the power of the grave
  4. Final conclusion
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The Five Snares of Covetousness

In this episode we delve into some of the practical sides of recognizing sin in our lives and being able to deal with it. Covetousness is a great example of this. A sin that we might not know about unless God had told us not to covet. It’s so important that it will exclude us from the kingdom of God. Frank joins Tim for interesting insights from his life on at least five areas to watch out for when it comes to covetousness.

Key verse: “Keep your life free from love of money, and be content with what you have, for he has said, “I will never leave you nor forsake you. So we can confidently say, “The Lord is my helper; I will not fear; what can man do to me?”” Hebrews 13:5-6

  1. Introduction
    1. The 10th commandment – Thou shalt not covet (Ex. 20:17). All other commandments seem to be external, but the 10th is obviously a commandment about how we think.
    2. The battle against sin in the mind (Rom. 7:7,22-23)
  2. The importance of recognizing and dealing with the sin of covetousness
    1. Exclusion from the kingdom of God (Eph. 5:3-5; 1 Cor. 6:9-10)
    2. The root of all evil (1 Tim. 6:9-11)
  3. Defining Covetousness
    1. English meaning
    2. Hebrew meaning
    3. Greek meaning
  4. Five Snares of Covetousness
    1. The snare of the credit card (Rom. 13:7-8)
      1. Buying things we want but do not really need, on a credit account, because we do not have sufficient money to pay for it.
      2. When we only pay the minimum balance instead of the whole balance on a credit account.
    2. The lure of advertising and buying on impulse
      1. Some stores are set up to encourage buying on impulse.
      2. This includes buying more of a product than we really need.
      3. Sometimes the store price is below their cost.
      4. One needs to make a list and stick to it.
    3. The deception of get rich quick schemes (lotteries, stock market)
      1. Huge payouts sound good and we can justify it to ourselves
      2. Actually winning would create more difficulties
      3. Investing wisely is good but must be careful not to get caught up in it all
    4. The enticement of entertainment and social media
      1. Most entertainment is the idolization of man. Everybody wants to be like the star.
      2. Social media is filled with people trying to be influencers
    5. The pitfalls of keeping up with the Jones
      1. We spend a lot of money just to keep up.
      2. Sometimes it is purely a matter of pride.
      3. Sometimes expectations are too high and we need to lower them. We don’t really need the latest and greatest.
      4. We live in a very wasteful society.
  5. The positives
    1. The flesh can never be satisfied (Ecc. 5:10). We always live to our means.
    2. Putting trust in God (Heb. 13:5-6)
    3. Godliness with contentment is great gain (1 Tim. 6:6)
  6. Final conclusion