VFBC Blog - Valley Forge Baptist Church

Valley Forge Baptist Church

Approaching Life from a Divine Perspective (Ephesians 4:1)

1/11/2023

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“I, therefore, the prisoner of the Lord, entreat you to walk in a manner worthy of the calling with which you have been called”
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To mature in our faith, we must learn to see things from God’s perspective.

Paul was a prisoner of Rome. Why then did he call himself “the prisoner of the Lord”? Because he had the ability to see everything in terms of how it affected Christ. No matter what happened in his life, he saw it in relation to God. His questions were, “What does this mean, God?” and “How does this affect You?”
When a problem comes in life, we are prone to say, “Oh, woe is me!” and wonder how it will affect us: Will it cause me pain? Will it cost me money? Too often we think only on the earthly level. But like Paul, we should think on a heavenly level: What is God trying to teach me? How can I glorify Him in this? In fact, a good definition of Christian maturity is: automatically seeing things in light of the divine perspective.
This perspective, this God-consciousness, is the only right way for Christians to live. David said, “I have set the Lord continually before me; because He is at my right hand, I will not be shaken. Therefore my heart is glad, and my glory rejoices; my flesh also will dwell securely” (Ps. 16:8-9). Because David was always aware of God’s presence, he found joy and security, and no trouble could disturb him for long.
Paul was the same way: he knew there was a reason for his imprisonment and that Christ would be glorified by it (cf. Phil. 1:12-14). Paul wasn’t preoccupied with how it affected him, and thus he was able to rejoice, even in prison.
“God causes all things to work together for good to those who love God, to those who are called according to His purpose” (Rom. 8:28). Nothing happens outside of God’s control. Let’s trust that He knows what is best for us.

Suggestions for Prayer
If you tend to get discouraged or complain when troubles come, ask God to forgive you and help you see troubles from His perspective. Acknowledge before Him that He is in control of everything.

For Further Study
Paul’s attitude toward difficulties was cultivated by the experience he describes in 2 Corinthians 12:2-10. What did Christ teach him about troubles in verse 9, and how did that change Paul’s outlook?

Morning Sermon for January 8, 2023

1/9/2023

The Bible and the New Birth (P1)

Happy New Year!! The Scripture has a LOT to say about “Newness”. We’ll take a look at just what the Bible has to say about the most important “new” it speaks of – “The New Birth”
Click the link below to view it:

https://youtu.be/ELFPsg9bMns

Alert, Aware, and Advancing (Ephesians 6:12)

1/9/2023

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“For we are not fighting against flesh-and-blood enemies, but against evil rulers and authorities of the unseen world, against mighty powers in this dark world, and against evil spirits in the heavenly places.”
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Some people are surprised to find that it isn’t easy being a Christian. Once we put our faith in Christ, we immediately find that we have an adversary, the devil, who wants to bring us down.
The spiritual battle rages every day, and this battle will not end until we’re safe in the arms of Jesus.
Writing to Timothy, the apostle Paul said, “I have fought the good fight, I have finished the race, and I have remained faithful. And now the prize awaits me—the crown of righteousness, which the Lord, the righteous Judge, will give me on the day of his return. And the prize is not just for me but for all who eagerly look forward to his appearing” (2 Timothy 4:7–8 NLT).
The word that Paul used for “fight” pointed to the Greek contests in which men would struggle against each other with all their might.
This reminds us that the Christian life is a constant process of moving forward. And the moment we stop moving forward, we will start moving backward. Thus, we need to put our armor on. We need to suit up.
Ephesians 6 tells us, “Put on all of God’s armor so that you will be able to stand firm against all strategies of the devil. For we are not fighting against flesh-and-blood enemies, but against evil rulers and authorities of the unseen world, against mighty powers in this dark world, and against evil spirits in the heavenly places” (verses 11–12 NLT).
Wouldn’t it be great to think that we could reach a plateau in our lives as believers where we are somehow above all temptations and struggles? But that isn’t going to happen. The fight will rage on until that final day.

So, we need to keep our armor on. We need to stay alert and aware and be constantly moving forward.

The Best Known Verse in the Entire Bible - John 3:16

1/7/2023

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16 For God so loved the world that He gave His only begotten Son, that whoever believes in Him should not perish but have everlasting life.
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There was a time when scarcely a person in the Anglo-Saxon world would not have been able to cite John 3:16. Doubtless it was the best known verse in the entire Bible. It may still hold that place today - I am uncertain. But if it does, the percentage of people who know it is considerably smaller, and continues to decline as biblical illiteracy rises in the West.
Meanwhile there is another verse that is (perhaps more) frequently quoted, almost as a defiant gesture, by some people who do not know their Bibles very well, but who think it authorizes their biases. It is Matthew 7:1: “Do not judge, or you too will be judged.” In an age when philosophical pluralism is on the ascendancy, these nine words might almost be taken as the public confession.
Three things must be said. First, it is striking that today’s readings include not only Matthew 7 but also Genesis 7. There the sweeping judgment of the Flood is enacted: “Every living thing on the face of the earth was wiped out; men and animals and the creatures that move along the ground and the birds of the air were wiped from the earth. Only Noah was left, and those with him in the ark” (Gen. 7:23). The same God stands behind both passages, so we should not be too hasty in understanding Matthew 7:1 to mean that all judgment is intrinsically evil.
Second, this is not an instance where something practiced in the Old Testament is somehow abolished in the New. It is not as if judgment was possible in Genesis but is now abolished in Matthew. After all, Matthew 7:6 demands that we make judgments about who are “dogs” and “pigs,” and the paragraphs at the end of this chapter warn against false prophets (and tell us how we are to discern who is true and who is false), and who is truly a follower of Jesus and who is not. Moreover, not only does this chapter speak of a terrible judgment no less final than the flood (Matt. 7:13, 19, 23), but there are many passages in the New Testament that are equally uncompromising.
Third, we must not only expose false interpretations of Matthew 7:1, we must understand what it does say and appropriate it. The verb judge has a wide range of meanings, and the context (7:1–5) is decisive in giving it its color in this passage. People who pursue righteousness (6:33) are easily prone to self-righteousness, arrogance, condescension toward others, an ugly holier-than-thou stance, hypocrisy. Not all are like that, of course, but the sin of “judgmentalism” is common enough. Jesus won’t have it.

Same Scene, Different Purpose (Psalm 139:13-14)

1/5/2023

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For You formed my inward parts; You covered me in my mother’s womb. I will praise You, for I am fearfully and wonderfully made.
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Consider what these five painting masters have in common: Vincent van Gogh, Henri Matisse, Leonardo da Vinci, Johann Füssli, and Edvard Munch. They all painted multiple versions of a single scene.

Recommended Reading:

Job 10: 8 – 12

Think about God’s creation of humanity: the same Artist but billions of unique versions of the same “picture” - different colors, traits, appearances, and personalities. Like a human artist who creates multiple versions of the same painting for his or her own reasons, God has shaped every human creation individually for His own reasons. And that includes you! God “fearfully and wonderfully” created you and ordained the days of your life before they came to be (Psalm 139:14, 16).
Give thanks for who you are today. And ask God to direct your steps that you might fulfill His unique purpose for your life.

That God creates and ordains the days of each human life gives significance and value to each life. - Steven J. Cole

Behold the Emperor of Woe! (John 19:5)

1/3/2023

by: 19th Century Preacher Charles H. Spurgeon

"Behold the Man!"

If there is one place where our Lord Jesus most fully becomes the joy and comfort of His people, it is where He plunged deepest into the depths of woe!
Come hither, gracious souls, and behold the Man in the garden of Gethsemane! Behold His heart so brimming with love, that He cannot hold it in--so full of sorrow, that it must find a vent. Behold the bloody sweat as it distills from every pore of His body, and falls upon the ground!
Behold the Man as they drive the nails into His hands and feet! Look up, repenting sinners, and see the sorrowful image of your suffering Lord! Mark Him, as the ruby drops stand on the thorn-crown, and adorn the diadem of the King of Misery with priceless gems!
Behold the Man when all His bones are out of joint, and He is poured out like water and brought into the dust of death! God has forsaken Him, and Hell compasses Him about. Behold and see--was there ever sorrow like unto His sorrow? All you who pass by, draw near and look upon this spectacle of grief! Unique, unparalleled, a wonder to men and angels, an unmatched marvel!
Behold the Emperor of Woe, who had no equal or rival in His agonies! Gaze upon Him you mourners--for if there is not consolation in a crucified Christ, there is no joy in earth or Heaven. If in the ransom price of His blood, there is not hope--you harps of heaven, there is no joy in you; and the right hand of God shall know no pleasures for evermore!

We have only to sit more continually at the cross foot, to be less troubled with our afflictions and woes.
We have but to see His sorrows, and we shall be ashamed to mention our sorrows.
We have but to gaze into His wounds, and heal our own.

If we would live aright--it must be by the contemplation of His death.
If we would rise to dignity--it must be by considering His humiliation and His sorrow!

How does the Bible Challenge or Agree with Current Scientific Theories? (Genesis 1:1)

1/1/2023

1 In the beginning God created the heavens and the earth.

Scientific theories, by their very definition, are subject to change and adjustment. Scripture remains as God’s revealed unchanging declaration of truth. The Bible was not written as a challenge to any particular scientific theory, but scientific theories have often been designed to challenge and undermine biblical statements. They either agree with scripture or are mistaken.
The description in Genesis 1:1 that “God created the heavens and the earth” yields three basic conclusions:

Creation was a recent event measured in thousands not millions of years ago;
Creation was ex nihilo, meaning that god created out of nothing;
Creation was special, with light and time being the first of god’s creative acts, since the day-count (Gen. 1:5) began before the creation of sun and moon (Gen. 1:16).

One key in evaluating scientific theories depends on our understanding of the biblical word “created.” Although the Hebrew word used in Genesis 1:1 can be used to describe the act of shaping or altering existent matter (Is. 65:18), such is not the case with the Bible’s first words. God spoke the heavens and earth into existence. Both context and the rest of Scripture bear witness to God’s creativity without use of any preexisting material (Is. 40:28; 45:8, 12, 18; 48:13; Jer. 10:16; Acts 17:24).

Happy New Year!!!

12/31/2022

May the Lord richly bless you and use you in the coming year!!

What is the Millennium? (Selected Passages)

12/31/2022

In Revelation 20:2, Satan is bound for “a thousand years.” This is the first of 6 references to the length of the millennial kingdom (vv. 3, 4, 5, 6, 7). There are 3 main views of the duration and nature of this period:

Premillennialism sees this as a literal 1,000-year period during which Jesus Christ, in fulfillment of numerous Old Testament prophecies (e.g., 2 Sam. 7:12–16; Ps. 2; Is. 11:6–12; 24:23; Hos. 3:4, 5; Joel 3:9–21; Amos 9:8–15; Mic. 4:1–8; Zeph. 3:14–20; Zech. 14:1–11; Matt. 24:29–31, 36–44), reigns on the earth. Using the same general principles of interpretation for both prophetic and non-prophetic passages leads most naturally to Premillennialism. Another strong argument supporting this view is that so many biblical prophecies have already been literally fulfilled, suggesting that future prophecies will likewise be fulfilled literally.
Postmillennialism understands the reference to a 1,000-year period as only symbolic of a golden age of righteousness and spiritual prosperity. It will be ushered in by the spread of the gospel during the present church age and brought to completion when Christ returns. According to this view, references to Christ’s reign on earth primarily describe His spiritual reign in the hearts of believers in the church.
Amillennialism understands the 1,000 years to be merely symbolic of a long period of time. This view interprets Old Testament prophecies of a Millennium as being fulfilled spiritually now in the church (either on earth or in heaven) or as references to the eternal state.

However…Using the same literal, historical, grammatical principles of interpretation so as to determine the normal sense of language, one is left with the inescapable conclusion that Christ will return and reign in a real kingdom on earth for 1,000 years. There is nothing in the text to lead to the conclusion that the conclusion that “a thousand years” is symbolic.

Christmas Day Sermon - Who Did Jesus SAY that He Was? (P1)

12/29/2022

We are taking some time this Christmas to think about BOTH how the baby Jesus was announced and then How it was that the Lord Jesus went about introducing “Who” (and What) He was during His life’s ministry

Click Link below to view the sermon:

https://youtu.be/gJRKHnUg1-s