Study of Great Bible Truths – Vol. 2 Lesson 32
Lesson 32: The Second Coming
1. The greatest incentive to holy living is the second coming of the Lord Jesus Christ. Our concern about the Lord’s second coming should be in terms of our relationship to Him. We should strive to be holy and to be ready for that great day.
2. Signs of the second coming of Christ are found in Mark 13 and Luke 21. The signs include:
a. False claims to be the Christ leading many astray
b. Nations against nations, kingdoms against kingdoms
c. Wars, rumors of wars
d. Famines and earthquakes
e. Falling away, betrayal, hating one another
f. False prophets will arise
g. Lawlessness will increase
h. Proclamation of the gospel throughout the whole world
i. Great tribulations as never before
3. Scriptures related to Christ’s second coming: Acts 1:7-11; Acts 3:19-21; Acts 17:31; 2nd Peter 3:1-18
4. We overlook the Doctrine of the Second Coming of Christ because of spiritual lethargy. We tend to become victims of life and circumstances. That is why we are told to remind ourselves of these things to stir ourselves up.
5. What is the manner of the 2nd Coming?
a. It will be a personal coming
b. It will be a physical as well as a physical coming. John 14: 18-19; Matthew 26:64; Acts 1:10-11; Hebrews 9:28; Revelation 4:7
c. Christ’s return will be visible.
d. Christ’s return will be sudden. That is why we as Christians must always be looking for Him and expecting Him. Matthew 24:27, 21:43; 1 Thessalonians 5:2; Matthew 24:44
e. His second coming will be a glorious appearing. Christ will come as the King of Kings and the Lord of Lords. Titus 2:13
Study of Great Bible Truths – Vol. 2 Lesson 31
Lesson 31: Death and Immortality
1. Christians should not avoid the subject of death…. It is inevitable.
2. Death is not merely the end of existence. Death is the separation of the soul and the physical body.
3. In life on earth, the soul and the body are intimately connected; they are one. The soul functions in and through the body. When one dies, the soul leaves the body, but the body will be left on the earth but the soul will go. Luke 12:4-5
4. According to the Bible, death is not a part of life. Death is punishment for sin. Death was introduced because of sin. Genesis 2:17, Genesis 3:19, Romans 5:12, James 1:14-15.
5. The Bible teaches that death was introduced as God’s punishment for sin. There was no death until man sinned and there would have been no death if man had not sinned.
6. The Christian believer has to die just like the unbeliever. Christians are waiting for the redemption of the body to be delivered from death, from sin, and from sickness. In this life God allows sickness, sin and death to persist.
7. Christians are still left subject to suffering, sickness and death as part of the process of our sanctification. Illness is a part of God’s process of discipline. (This does not mean that every time we become ill, we are being punished, but it may be the case). Sickness should cause us to examine ourselves. Hebrews 12:3-13, Psalm 119:67,71.
8. Death like illness is one of the means that God uses to sanctify us. 1Corinthians 15:55, Revelation 14:13
9. God has given immortality as a gift to the souls of men and women. 2 Timothy 1:10, PSALM 16:10-11, Psalm17:15, Job 19:25-26
10. There is no evidence of sleep of the soul. The Bible teaches a conscious existence after death and before the resurrection. Luke 16, Luke 23:43
Next Lesson: The Second Coming
Study of Great Bible Truths – Vol. 2 Lesson 30
Lesson 30: The Sacrament of Holy Communion
1. The Lord’s Supper (Holy Communion) represents our union with Christ and with other believers. 1 Corinthians 10:16-17
2. Communion seals all the benefits of the New Covenant (New Testament). It seals all the promises of God. God is telling us that we are His children, that He has adopted us and that all the benefits of being His children are ours.
3. The breaking of the bread and the drinking or pouring of the wine is a representation of our Lord’s broken body and His shed blood. The shedding of blood in our Lord’s death was the ratification of the New Covenant. Hebrews 8,9,10
4. Holy Communion is only for believers (sinful believers as well as weak believers).
(We do not have to be perfect to partake of the Lord’s supper). However, people who are unrepentant and living in sin should not take communion. 1 Corinthians 11:30.
5. Holy Communion must be received by faith. If one can’t receive Holy Communion by faith, it is better not to take it. If people will not examine, judge, condemn themselves and leave their sins, they will be judged.
6. Communion seals the effectiveness of the Word: It confirms our receiving of grace.
7. As believers partake of the Lord’s Supper we receive from the Lord Jesus Christ Himself, life and strength to live the Christian life.
Next Lesson: Death and Immortality
Study of Great Bible Truths – Vol. 2 Lesson 29
Lesson 29: The Sacrament of Baptism
(Read the following Scriptures: Matthew 28:19, 1 Corinthians 1:13, Romans 6:3-6, 1 Corinthians 12:13, Galatians 3:27, Colossians 2:12)
1. The word baptism suggest being placed into something, establishing a union.
a. We are baptized into the Holy Spirit
b. We are baptized into Christ
c. We are baptized into the body
d. We are baptized into the Father, the Son and the Holy Spirit
2. While the primary meaning of baptism is a union, it also signifies a sense of cleansing and purification.
3. In baptism we are cleansed from the guilt of sin. Acts 2:38, Acts 22:16, 1st Peter 3:21.
4. Baptism is an assurance we are delivered from the guilt and pollution of sin (1 Corinthians 6:11, Titus 3:5) so that we can be in union with Christ.
5. Baptism is a sign and seal of the remission of our sins and our justification. It is NOT a means of forgiveness and justification, but an assurance of it.
6. Baptism certifies that I am “born again”. That I am united with Christ and that the Holy Spirit dwells within me.
7. Baptism is a sign of membership in the Church of the Lord Jesus Christ. It is a separation from the world.
8. Baptism is something God has chosen to do to us. It is God giving us the seal of our regeneration, our forgiveness, and the indwelling presence of the Holy Spirit.
9. Baptism is bearing witness of my testimony that I believe God.
Next Lesson: Holy Communion– The Lord’s Supper.
Study of Great Bible Truths – Vol. 2 Lesson 28
Lesson 28: The Sacraments-Signs and Seals
1. Participating in the Sacraments (Baptism and Holy Communion) is how Christians are built up, strengthened, encouraged and established.
2. The Protestant teaching is that the believer receives grace through the Word of God, the application of the Word of God by the Holy Spirit, and through the Sacraments.
3. The Sacraments must never be separated from the Word of God. The Lord Himself initiated Holy Communion and Baptism.
4. The Protestant teaching is that Holy Communion and Baptism not only signify grace, but also seal grace. The Sacraments confirm the grace we have already received as Christians.
5. The Sacraments are visible signs of our membership in the Church of our Lord and Savior Jesus Christ. They are meant to signify and convey to those who are within the covenant of grace, the benefits of Christ’s redemption.
6. Without faith there is no value in Baptism or Holy Communion.
Next Lesson: Baptism
Key Thought: Baptism, nor Holy Communion is essential to our salvation. They are a means of grace administered by the Church for the upbuilding and strengthening of the believer. Both are commands of the Lord and both point to grace.
Study of Great Bible Truths – Vol. 2 Lesson 27
Lesson 27: The Government of the Church
1. The New Testament is not very specific regarding church government, because it was written while most of the Apostles were still alive. While they were alive, the Prophets and the Apostles were able to govern the church.
2. Order in the church is necessary. The Epistles discuss church order and government.
3. After the period of the Apostles and the Prophets, the church began to do things and add things which cannot be found in the Scriptures; creating traditions that were often contrary to Scripture.
4. When the Roman Empire became Christian, the Christian Church borrowed many of it’s ideas from their system of government.
5. In the New Testament, Bishop, Elder and Presbyter are interchangeable.
6. Local independent churches are the most scriptural. However, we should still fellowship with other churches who hold the same beliefs. Each local church should be autonomous and independent, but always ready to meet in fellowship with those who are like-minded and of like Spirit.
7. As a member of the body of Christ it is my business, my duty to see to it that the Church visible in no way contradicts the doctrine of the Lord Jesus Himself, of which He has made us custodians and guardians.
Key Thought: Tradition does not equal scripture
Next Lesson: The Sacraments– Signs and Seals
Study of Great Bible Truths – Vol. 2 Lesson 26
Lesson 26: The Marks and Government of the Church
(The Characteristics of the Church)
1. The three marks of the Church are:
a. Preaching and Evangelism
b. Exercise of Discipline
c. Administration of the Sacraments of Baptism and Communion
2. Preaching and evangelism are the main business of the church. The Word is preached in the church for the upbuilding and the establishing of the saints, the believers.
3. The church should instruct, warn against error, and safeguard its members against heresy.
4. Evangelism is the second objective of the church. It is the task of the Christian Church to preach/witness to those who are unbelievers. It is the work of the church to preach the gospel to those who are outside in order that they may be convinced and convicted of sin, that they may be led to a living, vital faith in our Lord and Savior Jesus Christ.
5. The second mark of the church is discipline (which is neglected in most churches today–this is why the church is in its present state; i.e., dwindling congregations, lack of power and lack of influence upon the lives of men and women). Matthew 18:15-17; Romans 16:17, 1 Corinthians 5, 2 Corinthians 2: 5-10, 2 Thessalonians 3:6-15, Titus 3:10, 2 John 10.
6. Church discipline must be exercised with respect to doctrine. The church must take a stand against false doctrine.
7. Inconsistency or a sinful lifestyle on the part of a believer does considerable harm to the cause of Christ. It does not matter how orthodox a person may be if they are not controlling and discipling themselves, their temper, their desires and passions, their lusts; they are in word and action denying the faith they preach. This causes them to be an obstacle and an offense to those outside the church.
8. The third mark of the Church is the true administration of the Sacraments of Baptism and Communion.
Key Thought: We must be concerned with church purity. A church mixed up with the world can’t be a channel of the Holy Spirit.
Next : Church Government
Study of Great Bible Truths – Vol. 2 Lesson 25
Lesson 25: The Unity of the Church
1. There must be spiritual unity in the Church of the Lord Jesus Christ. John 17:21-22.
2. Parts cannot work harmoniously if they do not belong to one another, if they don’t have the same life in them. Ephesians 2:18.
3. Unity must be based on doctrine (a set of beliefs held and taught by a church). John 17: 7-8, John 8:58, Acts 2:42.
4. Before there can be fellowship there must be a community of doctrine. Fellowship is based on the same faith, the same truth, and the same understanding of the truth. 2 John 10-11, 1 John 2:19
5. There is no account of a ‘national church’ in the Scripture. Colossians 3:11
Differences in nationality along with social and racial distinctions are immaterial and should NEVER be mentioned in connection with the Church of the Lord Jesus Christ.
6. The nation of Israel was the church in the Old Testament.
7. The Church is made up of people who have been born again and have spiritual life, who are members of the mystical body of Christ and gather together in a local assembly with Christ as the head. The Church consists of God’s people who live on earth, but who are also citizens of the Kingdom of God which is not of this world.
Key Thought: The Church operates under the Lordship and in the presence of the Lord Jesus Christ.
Next Lesson : The Marks and Government of the Church
Study of Great Bible Truths – Vol. 2 Lesson 24
Lesson 24: The Church and the Last Things
Luke 17:20-21—’Being asked by the Pharisees when the kingdom of God would come, He (Jesus) answered them, “ The Kingdom of God is not coming in ways that can be observed, nor will they say, ‘Look, there it is for behold the Kingdom of God is in the midst of you.”
1. What is the Kingdom of God? The Kingdom of God is the rule of God. The Kingdom of God is present wherever God is reigning. (If we regard the Kingdom of God as the rule and reign of God, the Kingdom was here when the Lord Jesus Christ was here in person). The Kingdom of God is present now wherever the Lord Jesus Christ is acknowledged as Lord.
2. The Kingdom of God will come with a greater fullness when everybody and everything will have to acknowledge the Lordship of Jesus Christ.
3. The church is a part of the Kingdom of God. However, the Kingdom of God is wider and bigger than the church. God rules in places outside of the church, places where He is not acknowledged because all things are in His hands, including history.
4. The church is “called out”, not necessarily out of the world but called out of society for some particular purpose.
5. The church consists of people who belong to the Lord, who are gathered together. The church is a local gathering of saints where the presence and the Lordship of Christ is recognized.
6. One cannot be a Christian without being a member of the church; spiritual and invisible. All Christians are members of the body of Christ.
7. People who are truly born again and spiritual are also members of the unseen spiritual church, the true body of Christ.
8. The church is the Bride of Christ and the Body of Christ—Ephesians 4,5; 1 Corinthians 12, Romans 12.
Key Thought: The church has parts scattered abroad and yet there is a central unity in Christ.
Next Lesson: The Unity of the Church
Study of Great Bible Truths – Vol. 2 Lesson 23
Lesson 23: The Gifts of the Spirit
Read 1 Corinthians 12th chapter for an outline of the Gifts of the Spirit.
1. Spiritual gifts are different from natural gifts. A spiritual gift is given directly to us by the Holy Spirit.
2. Spiritual gifts are extraordinary powers distinguishing certain Christians and enabling them to serve the Church of Christ.
3. Spiritual gifts are called charismata; referred to as charismatic gifts. The Holy Spirit decides what gifts to give to a particular person. 1 Corinthians 12:11
4. Each Christian is given, and therefore has, some spiritual gift. As with the human body, there is a special function for every member of the Christian Church. According to Apostle Paul, some gifts are important and some are unimportant, BUT ALL ARE NECESSARY.
5. The spiritual gifts differ in value. 1 Corinthians 12:28– And God has appointed in the church (1)Apostles, (2)Prophets, (3)Teachers, (4)Miracles, (5)Gifts of healing, (6)Gifts of helping, (7)Administration, and (8)various kinds of tongues. Other gifts include: Utterance of Wisdom, Utterance of Knowledge, Faith, the ability to discern spirits, and the interpretation of tongues.
6. Any or all spiritual gift(s) must be used in love. We should never estimate or judge a person’s spirituality solely in terms of their spiritual gift(s).
7. Permanent gifts of the Spirit include: the word of wisdom, the word of knowledge, the ability to teach, the gift of ministering and helps, the gift of administration and government, the gift of evangelism, the gift of the pastorate, the gift of exhortation, the gift of faith.
Next Lesson: The Church and the Last Things