Opened Scriptures Bible Studies

Are we sowing to our flesh or seeking the wonderful leading of God's Spirit? Galatians 6:7-8  Be not deceived; God is not mocked: for whatsoever a man soweth, that shall he also reap.  8)  For he that soweth to his flesh shall of the flesh reap corruption; but he that soweth to the Spirit shall of the Spirit reap life everlasting.  We need to explore these two verses again to gain a full understanding of what God is saying to us.  One major life principle is sowing and reaping and this is always connected to the spiritual realm.  As a rebellious child I did plenty of things that transgressed the commandments of God.  This is what Paul means when he speaks of sowing to the flesh.  We will receive consequences for our sins. For example, I was punished a lot when I rebelled against my parents. The good news of the gospel of Christ is that Jesus received the consequences of our sins because the wages of sin is death. Christ died for us. Scripture tell...

When any child of God strays, the Father's goal is our restoration. Galatians 6:1-5  Brethren, if a man be overtaken in a fault, ye which are spiritual, restore such an one in the spirit of meekness; considering thyself, lest thou also be tempted.  2)  Bear ye one another's burdens, and so fulfil the law of Christ.  3)  For if a man think himself to be something, when he is nothing, he deceiveth himself.  4)  But let every man prove his own work, and then shall he have rejoicing in himself alone, and not in another.  5)  For every man shall bear his own burden.  The Holy Spirit guided Paul to deal with Christians who are overtaken in a fault.  God's heart is for those who are walking faithfully with Christ to come alongside to help restore the erring brother or sister in Christ. We must always remember that in our flesh dwells nothing good and that the potential to sin or fall into error is also in us. We must devote ourselves to st...

Seeking to help an erring brother turn from sin and rejoin the church. Galatians 6:1  Brethren, if a man be overtaken in a fault, ye which are spiritual, restore such an one in the spirit of meekness; considering thyself, lest thou also be tempted.  We looked at the warning and remedy for those who are overtaken in a fault.  Paul directs his remarks to those who are "in Christ" , who are the "brethren." This means that we too, can potentially be overtaken in a fault. It is the idea of a sudden departure from the revealed truth of God's Word. God's remedy is for those who are faithful to His Word to come alongside to help those who are overtaken in a fault, seeking to restore them. The word "restore"  means to set in joint, as putting a dislocated bone back into place. What does it mean to bear one another's burdens? Galatians 6:2  Bear ye one another's burdens, and so fulfil the law of Christ.  We are directed to bear one another's bur...

Here is a note about indexes containing all Bible lessons posted on this blog since its inception in 2019.   An index for  all lessons  posted from 2019 through 2021, was published on  September 7, 2022. An index for all lessons posted in 2022, was published  J anuary 24, 2023. An index for all lessons posted in 2023 was posted on  February 28, 2024.  The index for all lessons posted in 2024 was published on January 21,2025.  The link below will take you to the YouTube channel of the church my wife and I attend. Pastor Alvis is a faithful minister of the gospel of Christ and an excellent preacher and expositor of the scriptures. He is resuming teaching Sunday school after an 18 month break. My lessons stopped with Nehemiah and Pastor is showing us what happened during teh time of the last Old Testament prophet Malachi. Pastor Alvis is also teaching us about what transpired during the 400 silent years between Malachi and the gospel of Matthew. We l...

A warning against deviating from gospel truth and a remedy from God. Galatians 6:1  Brethren, if a man be overtaken in a fault, ye which are spiritual, restore such an one in the spirit of meekness; considering thyself, lest thou also be tempted.  The Holy Spirit guided Paul to teach us about the dangers and remedy if we or others we know are ever overtaken in a fault. In order to understand this teaching we must see what certain words mean. The word "overtaken" literally means to be surprised by something, or to be caught by some circumstance without warning.   It is the idea of being suddenly invaded and captured before realizing what is going on. The fact that Paul said "Brethren if a man be overtaken " means potentially any Christian may be overtaken or caught by surprise in some fault. What is a "fault?" This Greek word is translated as "sins, trespasses, offenses and fault."  The word "fault" literally means to stumble aside ou...

The fruit of the Spirit is meekness. Galatians 5:22-23  But the fruit of the Spirit is love, joy, peace, longsuffering, gentleness, goodness, faith,  23)   Meekness, temperance: against such there is no law.  We have two more fruits that we will look at today. "Meekness" is the eighth of nine fruits. It literally means  gentleness, mildness or meekness. Meekness comes from having a humble heart. It is a softness of temper, marked by mildness or gentleness.  Meekness is having forbearance toward those who do wrong to us.  Meekness is a mildness toward the weak and erring, a patient suffering of injuries without a spirit of revenge, an even balance of temperament and passion.  It is the entire opposite to anger. Our culture is plagued by people who explode with hostility and rage against the slightest of wrongs. Meekness is the opposite of the hateful cultural corruption that surrounds us each day.  Paul learned meekness from the Lord Jesus Ch...