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A Fragrance of Death and Life

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devotional - Ligonier.com We are the aroma of Christ to God among those who are being saved and among those who are perishing, to one a fragrance from death to death, to the other a fragrance from life to life. Who is sufficient for these things?” 2Cor 2:15-16 Paul likens his Apostolic ministry to the victory parades of Roman generals. After a triumph, these generals would take their captured prisoners of war through a city in a procession celebrating the win, and the prisoners scattered incense to draw attention to the victory. Similarly, Christ parades throughout the world Paul and the other Apostles, who spread the fragrance—the gospel—that announces Jesus’ victory over the devil (2 Cor. 2:14). Adding another layer to this image, Paul in today’s passage says that he is the fragrance or “aroma of Christ to God” (v. 15). The picture is from sacrifices of the old covenant. When those sacrifices were offered rightly and burned, the scent of animal flesh on the a...
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The Man Jesus Would Not Answer

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The Man Jesus Would Not Answer David Guzik — enduringword.com Now when Herod saw Jesus, he was exceedingly glad; for he had desired for a long time to see Him, because he had heard many things about Him, and he hoped to see some miracle done by Him. Then he questioned Him with many words, but He answered him nothing. Luke 23:8-9 When Jesus was put on trial before the Roman authorities, there were three aspects. There was a first appearance before Pilate (Luke 23:1-7), and then a second appearance (Luke 23:13-25). In between, Jesus appeared before Herod . This Herod – usually known as Herod Antipas – was the son of Herod the Great , who ruled when Jesus was born. The Romans only allowed him to govern one-fourth of his father’s domain. For this reason, he is also known as Herod the Tetrarch – the word tetrarch meaning “ruler of one-fourth.” His ruled included Galilee, and since Jesus was from Galilee, Pilate was happy to send Jesus to Herod. ...
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The shift

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The period of the Law must be separated from the Kingdom of God The period of the Jewish Law {the 10 commands} must be separated from the kingdom of God, because, according to Christ the former has no connection with the latter. From the days of John the Baptist until now the kingdom of heaven has suffered violence, and the violent take it by force. For all the Prophets and the Law prophesied until John , and if you are willing to accept it, he is Elijah who is to come. He who has ears to hear, let him hear. Mt 11:12-15 coming soon...
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Not many of you should become teachers / shepherds

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Ken Ham About teachers Not many of you should become teachers, my brothers, for you know that we who teach will be judged with greater strictness. James 3:1 My father was a schoolteacher, and he also loved to teach God’s Word. But he explained that he never wanted to lead anyone astray, which is why his favorite verses of Scripture began with, “Have you not read?” or “It is written.” He loved to emphasize the authority of God’s Word because it is the ultimate source of truth and the basis for our Christian worldview. Another thing my father taught me was related to the various study Bibles. He would say, “Remember, the study notes are not inspired like the text, so always use the text as the commentary on the notes.” In other words, we need to judge what someone is teaching against the absolute authority of the Word of God. If we don’t do this, we can easily be led astray. About shepherds God’s Word has many warnings about shepherds who lead the sh...
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Seeking His glory is the way

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“The end of the matter; all has been heard. Fear God and keep his commandments, for this is the whole duty of man. For God will bring every deed into judgment, with every secret thing, whether good or evil” Eccl. 12:13–14 ... the Bible in many ways presents the glory of God as the chief end or purpose of human beings. He made us in His image to reflect His glory and to enter His glorious presence through Christ (Gen. 1:26–28; Heb. 12:18–29). Moreover, the Lord redeems us so that we will finally see Him face-to-face (1 John 3:3). In light of God’s purpose for us in creation, redemption, and worship, then, we should have as our ultimate aim to live our lives to the glory of God. If we want to bring ourselves in line with our Creator’s loving purpose for us, then seeking His glory is the way to do it. Consequently we must ask this question: Since the meaning of life is the glory of God and living in such a way that we aim to know and make known that glory, how do...
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