Two Minutes With The Bible - The Seventh from Adam


Apr 28

The Seventh from Adam

By Paul M. Sadler, President

Scripture Reading:

"And Enoch also, the seventh from Adam, prophesied of these, saying, Behold, the Lord cometh with ten thousands of his saints."    -- Jude 14

About two weeks prior to teaching the Dispensation of Conscience in my Dispensational Survey class at the Berean Bible Institute, I raised the following question to the student body.  What is the significance of Enoch being addressed as "the seventh from Adam"?  The entire class drew a blank -- they were stumped!!  Although it may seem rather insignificant at first glance, the Holy Spirit has added this phrase for good reason.  In fact, this phraseology is only used in reference to Enoch.

A number of the students gave some thought to the matter and even ventured a couple of explanations, which were true, but not the answer I was looking for.  Finally, one student eventually got two or three hints out of me and came up with the answer.  Upon arriving at the fourth and fifth chapters of the Book of Genesis, I explained to the class that there were two Enoch's before the days of the great flood. Therefore, we must carefully distinguish between the Enoch who descended from Cain, and the Enoch who was the "seventh from Adam" (Gen. 4:16-18 cf. 5:22-24).  The first Enoch walked in the way of Cain -- his descendants were morally bankrupt.

God would have us follow the example of Enoch, the seventh from Adam, who walked in the way of faith.  Thus "Enoch was translated that he should not see death; and was not found [implying everyone searched for him], because God had translated him: for before his translation he had this testimony, that he PLEASED GOD" (Heb. 11:5).  In addition, the path of the coming Redeemer would pass through Enoch, the seventh from Adam, not Cain's Enoch (Gen. 3:15).  So then, a seemingly insignificant phrase suddenly helps us better appreciate that: "All Scripture is given by inspiration of God, and is profitable for doctrine, for reproof, for correction, for instruction in righteousness" (II Tim. 3:16).

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[I BELONG TO JESUS!]

JudgeNot,

   Brother, I liked your presentation, and I'm very happy to stand up and be counted for Jesus.

There are other thought-provoking ways to take this message, and they are good for thought also. Some Christians hide and never stand up for Jesus. That makes other Christians wonder if they are ashamed to stand up and say, I BELONG TO JESUS!

SO, I would say that it's past time for all Christians to come out of the closet and shout it from the rooftops that they belong to JESUS. Some Christians are so covert that the world doesn't know they are Christians.

Love In Christ,
Tom

1 Timothy 3:16  And without controversy great is the mystery of godliness: God was manifest in the flesh, justified in the Spirit, seen of angels, preached unto the Gentiles, believed on in the world, received up into glory.

thecrucifiedlife,

I know a lot of Christians who have genuine joy and peace. I would and have said many times that Christians should be the happiest people on earth. I don't say that because of health, wealth, or worldly things, rather because of peace with God and the joy of walking in the Spirit. I know many Christians that the world would look at and think they should be miserable because of health or poverty, but they are the opposite.

I understand your message completely. On the other side of the coin are Christians who enjoy the yoke, the fight, the race, and the burdens to do the will of God. It's tiring and a struggle many times, but it always results in Joy with and in JESUS. So, it's a good tired and a good struggle.

Love In Christ,
Tom

1st Timothy 4:10  For therefore we both labour and suffer reproach, because we trust in the living God, who is the Saviour of all men, specially of those that believe.

Apr 27

JUSTIFIED FREELY

By Cornelius R. Stam

"Being justified freely by His grace, through the redemption that is in Christ Jesus" (Rom. 3:24).

It is wonderful to know that we sinners are not justified by praying, or paying, or saying, or sighing, or crying, or doing anything.  We are justified freely, by the grace of God.

But this passage from Romans will mean more to us when we learn how the word rendered "freely" here is translated elsewhere in the Bible. The same expression is found in John 15:25, where our Lord, quoting from the Psalms, said: "They hated me without a cause."

Why did men hate Him? He went about doing nothing but good: healing the sick, giving the blind their sight, causing the lame to leap for joy, preaching good news to the poor and deliverance to those who were bound. There was no good reason for crying, "Away with Him!" and "Crucify Him!" They hated Him "without a cause."

But in the same way we might ask: "Why should He die for sinners? Why should He pay for their sins? He had done nothing wrong." Ah, it was in love that He deliberately gave Himself into the hands of sinful men, that He, the sinless One, might pay for their sins. He did not die His own death, for death is "the wages of sin." He died our death, paying for our sins. So, as men hated Him "without a cause" (except their own sinful condition), so Christ has "Justified" believers "without a cause" (except His own divine love).

And so it is that we can now proclaim the glorious news that God has sent us to tell all mankind, that His righteousness is conferred "upon all those who believe," and that believers are "justified freely by His grace, through the redemption that is in Christ Jesus."

________________________

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     Trumpets blaring - drum-roll - YEAH!!

Apr 26

THREE BILLION WILLS

By Cornelius R. Stam

As long as man remained obedient to the will of God, his Maker, all was well with him. His life was perfectly balanced because it was centered in God. As soon as he listened to Satan, however, and set his will against God’s, all began to go wrong. His life was now off center and out of balance. It was no longer subject to the one central will.

Alienated from God, man now reaped the fruit of his rebellion, not only in his banishment from Paradise, but in the self-will of his offspring.

Of the first two children born into the world, one bludgeoned the other to death, and this was but the beginning. Whereas God had originally created man in His own "image" and "likeness" (Gen. 1:26,27), we read later that Adam begat Seth "in his own likeness, after his image" (Gen. 5:3).

And so parents down through the ages have begotten children like themselves, with fallen natures and wills of their own, until now we have some three billion wills operating in the world instead of the one central will of God.

This does not mean, however, that God has abdicated, or that the future of the world is now subject to the wills of three billion fallen creatures. Nor was God forced to formulate new plans because of the fall of man. Far from it, for despite man’s rebellion -- even through it -- God has been carrying out His plan and every true believer rejoices that God "worketh all things after the counsel of His own will" (Eph. 1:11). While He does not rule directly in the affairs of men, He very definitely overrules, and as a result "all things work together for good to them that love God, to them who are the called according to His purpose" (Rom. 8:28). All glory to that blessed One of whom it is written:

"Then said I, Lo, I come (in the volume of the Book it is written of Me) to do Thy WILL, O God" (Heb. 10:7).

________________________

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Paul2,

Brother, God loves to hear our prayers, and prayer is part of our fellowship with each other.

I was just wondering if you could hire some young guy to do the heavy stuff - you being the brains and know-how, and him being the back and brawn.

Love In Christ,
Tom

Romans 8:38-39 For I am persuaded that neither death, nor life, nor angels, nor principalities, nor powers, nor things present, nor things to come, nor height, nor depth, nor any other creature, shall be able to separate us from the love of God which is in Christ Jesus our Lord.

[The woodpecker might have to go!]

The woodpecker might have to go!

Everything I need to know about life, I learned from Noah's Ark...

1 - Don't miss the boat.

2 - Remember that we are all in the same boat.

3 - Plan ahead. It wasn't raining when Noah built the Ark.

4 - Stay fit. When you're 600 years old, someone may ask you to do something really big.

5 - Don't listen to critics; just get on with the job that needs to be done.

6 - Build your future on high ground.

7 - For safety sake, travel in pairs.

8 - Speed isn't always an advantage. The snails were on board with the cheetahs.

9 - When you're stressed, float a while.

10 - Remember the Ark was built by amateurs; the Titanic by professionals.

11 - No matter the storm, when you are with God, there's always a rainbow waiting.

[Getting Older:]

     Good ones. Now for my groaner:
______________

Getting Older:

Getting older is like visiting an all-you-can-eat buffet. What should be hot is cold, what should be firm is limp, and the buns are bigger than anything else on the menu.  

Pastor Roger,

Brother, I will definitely be praying for you and your wife. They can do wonders now with joint replacement. I will pray that God gives the doctors skill for the best possible treatment. Maybe your wife is like mine. My wife is very sensitive to the medications they use to put people to sleep. The doctors knew this on her last surgery, and things went very smoothly.

Love In Christ,
Tom

Hebrews 11:1  Now faith is the substance of things hoped for, the evidence of things not seen.

Brother,

I'll be praying for you.

Love In Christ,
Tom

Romans 8:31-34  What shall we then say to these things? If God be for us, who can be against us? He that spared not his own Son, but delivered him up for us all, how shall he not with him also freely give us all things? Who shall lay any thing to the charge of God's elect? It is God that justifieth. Who is he that condemneth? It is Christ that died, yea rather, that is risen again, who is even at the right hand of God, who also maketh intercession for us.

Paul2,

Brother, I have permanent back problems, so I understand completely how painful it is. I will definitely be praying for you.

Brother, take it easy and get to feeling better.

In the meantime - KEEP LOOKING UP!

Love In Christ,
Tom

John 14:1-3  Let not your heart be troubled: ye believe in God, believe also in me. In my Father's house are many mansions: if it were not so, I would have told you. I go to prepare a place for you. And if I go and prepare a place for you, I will come again, and receive you unto myself; that where I am, there ye may be also.

WELCOME GODWARRIOR!!

I do love your enthusiasm and excitement for Jesus. I'm an old guy, so I get excited if I get up in the morning, read the newspaper, and don't find my name in the obituary column.  

Jump in and have some fun. We do have many interesting and sweet Christians here.

Love In Christ,
Tom

Ephesians 1:12-14  That we should be to the praise of his glory, who first trusted in Christ. In whom ye also trusted, after that ye heard the word of truth, the gospel of your salvation: in whom also after that ye believed, ye were sealed with that holy Spirit of promise, Which is the earnest of our inheritance until the redemption of the purchased possession, unto the praise of his glory.

Alabama Gambling Interests Accused of Trying to Stifle Free Speech

by Ed Thomas
April 25, 2005

(AgapePress) - For the last four weeks, a group of 10 state senators in Alabama has been filibustering a bill that the lawmakers believe is backed by the gambling lobby, and the head of the state Christian Coalition believes the legislation is designed to hurt the political efforts of groups like his that are working against that lobby.

John Giles is president of the Christian Coalition of Alabama. He says the bill known as HB 75, which was approved in the State House last year, would require the donor list of his and other issue advocacy nonprofit groups be disclosed -- a requirement which he believes would open those on the list up to attack.

"HB 75 was a bill that was basically created about three years ago by the gambling interests in Alabama," Giles asserts, "because they wanted to try to intimidate the donors of the Christian Coalition, to get us out of the way so they could pass gambling legislation in the State of Alabama."

The Christian Coalition spokesman maintains that the intent of the bill is to quash free-speech rights by pressuring the donors on the list until they withdraw their support from the Christian organization. He says publicizing the donors' list would essentially put the pro-family group and its supporters "in a posture of being retaliated against," which would undoubtedly cause donors to withdraw and ultimately limit free speech.

Giles says while this conflict has been ignored by the media, it has fundamental importance for the future of Alabama and the gambling debate. "Our type activity and the activity of [other nonprofit Christian groups] are basically issue advocacies," he contends, "and that's been defined by the courts as free speech. Well, you cannot regulate or legislate and [thereby] limit and chill free speech."

According the Alabama Christian Coalition president, HB 75 is a veiled attempt to suppress the First Amendment rights of those who oppose the gambling interests. He urges all Alabama citizens to call their state senators' offices and demand a no vote on the legislation.
Ed Thomas, a regular contributor to AgapePress, is a reporter for American Family Radio News, which can be heard online.

http://news.christiansunite.com/Religion_News/religion02617.shtml

Additional information on ChristiansUnite.com is available on the Internet at http://www.christiansunite.com/
Copyright © 2003 ChristiansUnite.com. All rights reserved.

Apr 25

THE END OF THE WORLD

By Cornelius R. Stam

There has been a great deal of discussion lately about some Hindu astrologers who have predicted that this world will come to an end this February. The fact is that some sincere Christians fear that these prophets might be right, since our Lord did speak several times about the coming "end of the world."

These Hindu astrologers, however, are wrong. This February will not see the end of the world, for according to the Bible the world, or earth, will never come to an end. The word "world," which our Lord uses in this connection, does not refer to the earth, or even the people on it. It is the old Greek word aion, or age. Several ages in God’s program have already come to an end, and others will, but no matter what destructive weapons man may devise, the earth will never be destroyed. In Isaiah 45:18 we read:

"For thus saith the Lord that created the heavens: God Himself that formed the earth and made it; He hath established it; He created it not in vain; He formed it to be inhabited: I am the Lord, and there is none else."

But doesn’t Rev. 21:1 predict "a new heaven and a new earth"? Yes, but the context clearly indicates that this refers to the future renewing of the present heaven and earth, not the creating of different ones. Verse 5 says: "He that sat upon the throne: said, Behold I make all things new." Note: He didn’t say "I make all new things," but "I make all things new." There is a difference.

We should not be concerned about the end of the world, but rather about the end of this present age in which we live under "the dispensation of the grace of God," for God has never promised how long this will last. Every hour He delays the return of Christ to recall His ambassadors, is an hour of wonderful grace, in which men may be saved by grace, through faith in Christ who died for our sins. This is why Paul urges us:

"We then, as workers together with [Christ], beseech you also that ye receive not the grace of God in vain.... Behold, NOW is the accepted time; Behold, NOW is the day of salvation" (II Cor. 6:1,2).

________________________

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One year's worth of Two Minutes With The Bible daily devotional articles are also available in book form, along with many other Bible study materials, in the Literature Corner section of our website at:
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