Acts Of Faith - Kingdom Advancement

Kingdom Advancement - Acts Of Faith
Phillip A. Ross, Author

Jesus was the most misunderstood man in history — and He still is. But does He stand alone? Has anyone ever completely understood what the Lord was up to? This study of Acts shows that Paul understood Jesus, and carried forward Jesus' perspective, not simply Paul's perspective. It was an old perspective because it was a biblical perspective, not a new perspective.

See into one man's theology turned rightside up by the love of Christ. A pastor, born again in the pulpit, encounters the world and the church in the light of the gospel — and everything changed.

Pilgrim Platform Books, Author Phillip A. Ross

The Gospel Promise And The Gospel Warning

Proverbs 2:1-15
There is a real call for spiritual growth here. We are to accept God's words, storing up His commands, turning our ears to wisdom and our hearts to understanding (1-2). If we are to grow in the fear and knowledge of God, we must pray for insight and understanding. These blessings are greater than silver and hidden treasure (3-5). In the Christian life, there is both promise and warning. There is God’s promise - you will be led in a way that ‘will be pleasant to your soul’(10). There is His warning - make sure that you do not ‘leave the straight paths to walk in dark ways’(13). It is very important that we take time to read God’s Word, since it is ‘the Lord’ who ‘gives wisdom’. We must listen for God’s Voice, speaking to us through Scripture (6). As we listen to Him, we will be led in ‘every good path’- protected and victorious (7-9).

Proverbs 2:16-3:4
We read the warning about ‘the adulteress’: ‘her house leads down to death’(16-18). We also hear the warning of the Gospel: ‘the wages of sin is death’(Romans 6:23). We are told that ‘none who go to her return or attain the paths of life’(19). Left to ourselves, none of us would return to God, none of us would find the way to life (Romans 3:10-12). Some seek ‘prosperity’(1). They seek ‘a good name in the sight of... men’(4). We must not, however, make these things the be-all and end-all. There is more to life than material possessions, more than high ratings in the popularity stakes. There is eternal life - ‘the free gift of God is eternal life in Christ Jesus our Lord’(Romans 6:23) - and the forgiveness of sins - ‘justified by faith, we have peace with God through our Lord Jesus Christ’(Romans 5:1).

Trust In Christ And Give Him All The Glory.

Romans 9:1-33 
We read about ‘Jews’ and ‘Gentiles’. We learn about salvation. The Jews are not saved because of their nationality. It is ‘not because of works’. The Gentiles are not excluded because of their nationality. It is ‘because of His call’. Salvation comes from God’s grace, not from our good works. It is received ‘by faith’, not ‘by works’(24,11,30-32). There is for us here a word of warning and a word of promise. Here’s the warning - You can be religious without being saved: ‘not all who are descended from Israel belong to Israel... it is not the children of the flesh who are the children of God’(6-8). Here’s the promise - You can be saved through faith in Jesus Christ: Through faith in Him, those who were ‘not God’s people’ became ‘sons of the living God’(26). Trust in Christ, not in yourself! 

Romans 10:1-21 
To ‘Jew and Gentile’, God says, ‘Everyone who calls on the name of the Lord will be saved’(12-13). The Jews had praised the Lord Jesus: ‘Hosanna! Blessed is He who comes in the Name of the Lord, even the King of Israel!’. Before long, they were shouting, ‘Crucify Him, crucify Him!’(John 12:12-13; 19:6). We rejoice that the Gospel has now come to the Gentiles. We remember also that God still ‘holds out His hands to Israel’(19-21). Still, Christ says, ‘O Jerusalem, Jerusalem... How often would I have gathered your children together...’(Luke 13:34). ‘Pray for the peace of Jerusalem’, for the advance of the Gospel among the Jews (Psalm 122:6). Pray also for the ‘voice’ of the Gospel, ‘going out into all the earth’(18). Pray that ‘faith will come as the Word of Christ is heard’(17). 

Romans 11:1-36 
‘You stand fast only through faith. So do not become proud, but stand in awe’(20). In 9:32, Paul contrasted ‘faith’ and ‘works’. Here, he contrasts ‘grace’ and ‘works’(6). Grace and faith belong together. ‘Nothing in my hand I bring, Simply to Thy Cross I cling’(Church Hymnary, 83) - This is faith, looking away from itself to divine grace. We do not come to God with our religion in one hand and our morality in the other. We hear the Gospel invitation - ‘O come to the Father through Jesus the Son’. Trusting in Christ, we say, ‘To God be the glory! Great things He has done’(Church Hymnary, 374). It is only when we bow at the foot of the Cross that we are able to say, with Paul, ‘To Him be the glory for ever!’(36; Galatians 6:14; 1 Corinthians 1:30-31).
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Blessings in Christ 
Christ in all the Scriptures 
http://christinallthescriptures.blogspot.com

The Good News Of Salvation

Romans 4:1-25
Salvation is not a ‘reward’ to be ‘earned’. It is God’s ‘gift’(4-5). Salvation comes from the Lord. ‘God so loved the world that He gave His only Son’(John 3:16): Without the love of God, the gift of God, the Son of God, there can be no salvation. The way of salvation does not begin with the word ‘I’. Jesus Christ is the Way. He is the Saviour. Salvation is in Him (John 14:6; Matthew 1:21; Acts 4:12). Looking to ‘Jesus our Lord’, crucified and raised for our salvation, we are saved and we give ‘glory to God’(20-25). We rejoice in ‘God our Saviour’- ‘He saved us, not because of deeds done by us in righteousness, but in virtue of His own mercy...’(Titus 3:4-7). Looking away from ourselves to Christ, we learn the truth of God’s Word: ‘it is on the basis of faith that it may rest on grace’(16). This is Good News!
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Blessings in Christ
Christ in all the Scriptures
http://christinallthescriptures.blogspot.com

Rejoice In Your Saviour!

Romans 3:1-31
We are sinners - every single one of us. There are no exceptions - ‘all have sinned and fall short of the glory of God’. When we see ourselves as we really are - sinners - , we come to see that there is no way for us to earn God’s love. We will never deserve to be loved by God. His love is always ‘a gift’- ‘the redemption which is in Christ Jesus’(23-24). Through ‘faith’ we look away from ourselves to Christ. We rejoice that ‘His blood’ was shed for us. We receive from Him the forgiveness of our sins. This is the love of God. This is His gift. He gave His Son to be our Saviour. He gives salvation to all who trust the Saviour. ‘By grace you have been saved through faith; and this is not your own doing, it is the gift of God’(Ephesians 2:8). No ‘boasting’(27) - Rejoice in your Saviour!
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Blessings in Christ
Christ in all the Scriptures
http://christinallthescriptures.blogspot.com

Christ Jesus Came Into The World To Save Sinners.

Romans 2:1-29
None of us can ‘escape the judgment of God’. None of us can ‘presume upon the riches of His kindness’(3-4). We dare not come to God like the Pharisee, ‘God, I thank Thee that I am not like other men...’. We can only come to Him with the prayer of the tax collector, ‘God, be merciful to me a sinner!’(Luke 18:11-13). We must not pretend that we are ‘righteous’. We must confess that we are ‘sinners’(Luke 5:32). Sinners, lost, dead - We must hear this ‘bad news if we are to come to a true appreciation of the Good News: ‘Christ Jesus came into the world to save sinners (1 Timothy 1:15), ‘The Son of man came to seek and save the lost’(Luke 19:10), ‘God, who is rich in mercy, made us alive with Christ even when we were dead in transgressions - it is by grace you have been saved’(Ephesians 2:4-5).

Blessings in Christ
Christ in all the Scriptures
http://christinallthescriptures.blogspot.com

Don't Be Ashamed Of The Gospel.

Romans 1:1-32
'‘I am not ashamed of the Gospel: it is the power of God for salvation to every one who has faith’(16). Do you think it was easy for Paul to maintain such commitment to Christ, such confidence in Christ? What kind of world did he live in? - A world of ‘ungodliness and wickedness’(18-31). Many times, Paul could have given up in despair - ‘There is too much ungodliness and wickedness all around me. How can I go on?’. When you feel like giving up, when everything seems to be so difficult, remember Paul. Remember his longing to ‘impart some spiritual gift’, his desire to ‘reap some harvest’ his eagerness to ‘preach the gospel’(12-15). Let us say, with Paul, ‘God forbid that I should glory save in the cross of our Lord Jesus Christ’(Galatians 6:14). Let us be ‘set apart for the gospel of God’(1).
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Blessings in Christ
Christ in all the Scriptures
http://christinallthescriptures.blogspot.com