VFBC Blog - Valley Forge Baptist Church

Valley Forge Baptist Church

God's Initiative - Luke 19:10

12/15/2022

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For the Son of Man has come to seek and to save that which was lost.
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The Italian artist Michelangelo painted the ceiling of the Vatican’s Sistine Chapel. The most famous part of the ceiling is The Creation of Adam which depicts God reaching out His finger to touch the outstretched hand of Adam, imparting to him the gift of life. While the scene conveys many biblical truths, perhaps central is the initiative of God—God reaching out to man.

Recommended Reading:

1 Timothy 1: 15

Creation was not the only time when God took the initiative regarding man, creating man in His own image. When man was in need of redemption and reconciliation, due to sin and estrangement from God, He reached out again. God didn’t allow mankind to flounder and perish in their sins; He reached out to His creation in the Person of Jesus Christ: “For the Son of Man has come to seek and to save that which was lost.” God sent Jesus into the world to seek and to save those who were far from God.
Take the initiative this Christmas season to reach out to God with thanks and praise for Jesus and to others with the Christmas message of grace and salvation.

If [God] does not show Himself, nothing you can do will enable you to find Him.

C. S. Lewis

Let the Lord Choose for You - Deuteronomy 32:4

12/13/2022

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“He is the Rock; his deeds are perfect. Everything he does is just and fair. He is a faithful God who does no wrong; how just and upright he is!”
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Have you ever drunk something so foul that you couldn’t finish it, like milk that you didn’t realize was already spoiled?
In the Garden of Gethsemane, Jesus bowed down and prayed, “O My Father, if it is possible, let this cup pass from Me; nevertheless, not as I will, but as You will” (Matthew 26:39 NKJV).
The cup that Jesus gazed into was something that turned His stomach. But it wasn’t a literal cup; it was a cup of suffering. Our Lord recoiled from the knowledge that He - someone who was sinless, perfect, and pure - would have to take upon Himself everything that was sinful, imperfect, and impure.
Jesus had never spent a moment out of fellowship with the Father, but soon He would have to bear all the sins of the world. Jesus knew what was going to happen. He knew that Judas would betray Him, His disciples would abandon Him, and Peter would deny Him. And He knew about the whipping, the crucifixion, and all the rest.
Jesus didn’t want to drink this cup, but He knew He had to. There was no question that it was going to be very difficult for Him, to say the least. He was going to face the full wrath of God against all sin.
But look at what it accomplished. It brought about our salvation. Because of what Jesus did, because He drank that cup, we can call upon His name. Although it was difficult, it was necessary for the attainment of the ultimate goal.
Jesus gave us a model of what to do in times of uncertainty. He prayed, “Not as I will, but as You will.” We are not going to know the will of God in every situation. In those times when we don’t know the will of God, will we let Him choose for us? We must never be afraid to place an unknown future into the hands of a known God.

Sermon - Luke 1:26-33 – The Divine Announcement (P1)

12/12/2022

Beginning to think about the Angelic Announcement made to thee Virgin Mary concerning the coming blessing in bearing the Lord Jesus Christ, the Promised Messiah and Savior of men from sin. Leave me any comments or observations...

Click the Link Below...

https://youtu.be/4nPKnpio2sY

Why is it so Important to John to “Confess Jesus Christ as Coming in the Flesh" - 2 John 7

12/11/2022

John’s purpose was to strengthen Christians to resist the tide of heresy that was rising against the church. Much of this false teaching was an early form of Gnosticism.
The gnostic idea that matter was evil and only spirit was good led to the idea that either the body should be treated harshly, a form of asceticism (Col. 2:21–23), or that sin committed in the body had no connection or effect on one’s spirit. In other words, the false teaching sought to drive a wedge between body and soul. This is why it often maintained that Jesus could not have been God and man at the same time.
The result of this error in teaching was compounded when some, including John’s opponents, concluded that sins committed in the physical body did not matter. Absolute indulgence in immorality was permissible. One could deny sin even existed (1 John 1:8–10) and disregard God’s law (1 John 3:4).
As a bulwark against this heresy, John lifted the confession that “Jesus Christ [came] in the flesh” (v. 7). What Christians do in their physical life is directly connected with what they do in their spiritual life. John emphasized the need for obedience to God’s laws, for he defined the true love for God as obedience to His commandments (1 John 5:3). Jesus, in His human living, offered the perfect example of that kind of love.

Isaiah 7:14 - God Keeps His Promises

12/9/2022

Therefore the Lord Himself will give you a sign: Behold, the virgin shall conceive and bear a Son, and shall call His name Immanuel.

Each of the four Gospel accounts of Jesus’ life were addressed to a unique audience - Matthew’s account being written for Jewish readers. Fifteen times in Matthew the author refers to Old Testament prophecies being “fulfilled” through the birth, life, and ministry of Jesus. This emphasis on fulfillment was to convince Jewish readers that Jesus was the promised Messiah.

Recommended Reading:

Isaiah 7: 10–14

One of the plainest instances of Matthew’s purpose is found in Matthew 1:22: “So all this was done that it might be fulfilled which was spoken by the Lord through the prophet [Isaiah].” Matthew was referring to the prophecy that a virgin would bear a Son as a sign that God was with the people (Immanuel). And Matthew wrote that Mary was the virgin and Jesus was the Son who was “God with us” (1:23). Matthew wanted his readers to know not only that Jesus was the prophesied Messiah but also that God fulfills His promises.
Just as God kept His promise two thousand years ago, so He will keep His promises today. He is still Immanuel - God with us - and we can trust Him.

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Let God’s promises shine on your problems.

Corrie ten Boom

December 4, 2022 - AM Sermon

12/7/2022

Colossians 2_11-15 – Complete in Christ – Conclusion

Finishing out our verse by verse study of Colossians with the declaration that the death of Christ brings transformation, pardon, and victory. That adds up to complete salvation with complete forgiveness and complete victory!! It was No wonder Paul said,

“May it never be that I should boast, except in the cross of our Lord Jesus Christ, through which the world has been crucified to me, and I to the world” (Gal. 6:14).

Click this link:
https://youtu.be/oAjdajAGjNM

What are the 3 Characteristics of an “Overcomer”?

12/7/2022

“Whoever believes that Jesus is the Christ is born of God” (1 John 5:1). Saving faith is the first characteristic of an overcomer. The term “believes” conveys the idea of continuing faith, making the point that the mark of genuine believers is that they continue in faith throughout their life. Saving belief is not simply intellectual acceptance, but wholehearted dedication to Jesus Christ that is permanent. The object of the believer’s faith is Jesus, particularly that He is the promised Messiah or “Anointed One” whom God sent to be the Savior from sin. Whoever places faith in Jesus Christ as the only Savior has been born again and, as a result, is an overcomer (v. 5). To be “born of God” is a reference to the new birth and is the same word that Jesus used in John 3:7. The tense of the Greek verb indicates that ongoing faith is the result of the new birth and, therefore, the evidence of the new birth. The sons of God will manifest the reality that they have been born again by continuing to believe in God’s Son, the Savior. The new birth brings us into a permanent faith relationship with God and Christ.
“And everyone who loves Him who begot also loves him who is begotten of Him” (v. 1). Love is the second characteristic of the overcomer. The overcomer not only believes in God, but loves both God and fellow believers. The moral test is again in view.
“By this we know that we love the children of God, when we love God and keep His commandments” (v. 2). John repeats this phrase twice in these 2 verses. Obedience is the third characteristic of an overcomer. In these verses, John weaves faith, love, and obedience all together inextricably. They exist mutually in a dynamic relationship—as the genuine proof of love is obedience, so the genuine proof of faith is love. The word “keep” conveys the idea of constant obedience (John 8:31, 32; 14:15, 21; 15:10).

Layers of Love - Romans 5:5

12/5/2022

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Now hope does not disappoint, because the love of God has been poured out in our hearts by the Holy Spirit who was given to us.
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Love comes in layers. The intimate love of a married couple is very exclusive. The love we have for our children is intense. We have friends we love on a different level, and there’s a special bond of love that unites followers of Christ. And yet, even with all those love layers extending from us, there is still enough love within us—thanks to the Holy Spirit!—to love the whole world.

Recommended Reading:

Matthew 25: 37 – 40

That’s why the Bible tells us to entertain strangers (Hebrews 13:2), to have pity on the poor (Proverbs 19:17), to bear one another’s burdens (Galatians 6:2), to visit orphans and widows in their distress (James 1:27), to love our enemies and do good to those who hate us (Luke 6:27), to support the weak (Acts 20:35), and to “be kindly affectionate to one another” (Romans 12:10).
Love is demonstrated not just through words, but through actions. Be intentional in loving others, and God will reward you for your faithful obedience to His command.

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True love is an act of the will—a conscious decision to do what is best for the other person instead of ourselves.
Billy Graham
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Knowing God’s Will - Ephesians 5:17

12/1/2022

“Do not be foolish, but understand what the will of the Lord is.”

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God’s will is revealed in His Word.
How can a Christian walk wisely and know the will of God for his life? The will of God is explicitly revealed to us in the pages of Scripture. God’s will is that we be:

Saved - “This is good and acceptable in the sight of God our Savior, who desires all men to be saved and to come to the knowledge of the truth” (1 Tim. 2:3–4; compare 2 Peter 3:9).
Spirit–filled - “Do not be foolish, but understand what the will of the Lord is. And do not get drunk with wine, for that is dissipation, but be filled with the Spirit” (Eph. 5:17–18).
Sanctified - “This is the will of God, your sanctification” (1 Thess. 4:3).
Submissive - “Submit yourselves for the Lord’s sake to every human institution, whether to a king as the one in authority, or to governors as sent by him for the punishment of evildoers and the praise of those who do right. For such is the will of God” (1 Peter 2:13–15).
Suffering for His sake - “It is better, if God should will it so, that you suffer for doing what is right rather than for doing what is wrong” (1 Peter 3:17).
Saying thanks - “In everything give thanks; for this is God’s will for you in Christ Jesus” (1 Thess. 5:18).

You may say, “Those are good principles, but they don’t tell me where I ought to go to school or whom I should marry.” But if you’re saved, sanctified, submissive, suffering, and saying thanks, you can do whatever you want! That’s what the psalmist meant when he said, “Delight yourself in the Lord; and He will give you the desires of your heart” (Ps. 37:4). Does that mean He fulfills the desire? Yes, but before He fulfills it, He puts it in your heart. If you are living a godly life, He will give you the right desires and then fulfill them.

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Suggestions for Prayer: Give thanks to God for revealing His will in His Word so that you can live wisely, not foolishly.

For Further Study: Christ acted only in accordance with His Father’s will. Read the following verses, and note how that was so: Matthew 26:42; John 4:34; 5:30; 6:38.

Elder Stephen P. Diem Preaching on Joshua 6 – “Obedience!”

12/1/2022

In the place of Pastor Bill (Seizure activity) Elder Stephen P. Diem Preaching on Joshua 6 – “Obedience!”

"How Israel followed the Lord’s command and achieved complete victory!"
Click the link below:

https://youtu.be/0x5shV9lDmA