Go to God, Not Just Church My friends, it is one thing to go to church or chapel; it is quite another thing to go to God. Psalm 145:18 The LORD is near to everyone who prays to him, to every faithful person who prays to him. Jeremiah 29:12–13 Then you will call to me. You will come and pray to me, and I will hear you. When you look for me, you will find me. When you wholeheartedly seek me, Hebrews 4:16 So we can go confidently to the throne of God’s kindness to receive mercy and find kindness, which will help us at the right time. 1 Thessalonians 5:17 Never stop praying. DON’T JUST GO TO CHURCH, GO TO GOD. THINK ABOUT IT. Everlastingsalvationchurchofgod.com PayPal.me/donatetochurch PASTOR ANDRA HIGGINBOTHAM
OUR GOD SPEAKS TO US ABOUT SERVICE What God expects of Christians is made clear throughout the NT. Nearly forty exhortations appear in Rom. 12 alone. The apostolic creed found in Tit. 2:11–14 outlines the Christian life as the denial of ungodliness and worldly lusts, accompanied by self restraint, righteousness, godliness and the expectation of the return of Christ. Another such outline in Heb. 10:19–25 calls for prayer, public testimony, a good example to others and assembly for worship. It is reasonable, or spiritual, RV, to present one’s body to God as a living sacrifice to serve Him, Rom. 12:1. This service must be exclusive, Luke 16:13; given with the spirit, Rom. 1:9; rendered with reverence and godly fear, Heb. 12:28; motivated by love, Gal. 5:13. It calls for following Christ, John 12:26, whom all Christians serve, Col. 3:24, as they serve God, Acts 27:23. Believers are described as persons who have turned to God from idols to serve the living and true God, 1 Thess. 1:9. This service may take the form of fasting and prayer, Luke 2:37, or ministering to the poor and needy, or giving oneself to prayer and the ministry of the Word as did the apostles, Acts 6:1–4. When Christian service is rendered in righteousness, peace, and joy, the believer is acceptable to God and approved of men, Rom. 14:17, 18. THERE IS A LOT TO RECEIVE FROM THIS QUICK STUDY. IT IS A GOOD REFRESHER, ALLOW IT TO BE A GUIDE UNTO YOUR LIFE. Everlastingsalvationchurchofgod.com PayPal.me/donatetochurch PASTOR ANDRA HIGGINBOTHAM
A WORD FROM GOD Romans 12:18-19 GNB Do everything possible on your part to live in peace with everybody.Never take revenge, my friends, but instead let God’s anger do it.For the scripture says, “I will take revenge, I will pay back, says the Lord.” DON’T START TROUBLE, LIVE IN PEACE.DON’T ALLOW ANYONE TO CAUSE YOU TO GET INTO TROUBLE. LET GOD FIGHT YOUR BATTLES. GOD WILL TAKE CARE OF IT. John 18:17 GNB The girl at the gate said to Peter, “Aren’t you also one of the disciples of that man?” “No, I am not,” answered Peter. JUST BECAUSE A PERSON SAY THEY LOVE YOU, JUST BECAUSE A PERSON HANG OUT WITH YOU EVERYDAY, DON’T THINK THEY WON’T TURN THERE BACK ON YOU. THINK ABOUT IT. Everlastingsalvationchurchofgod.com PayPal.me/donatetochurch PASTOR ANDRA HIGGINBOTHAM
SALVATION AND REWARDS A number of clear contrasts between the two appear in Scripture. Salvation is for the lost, Matt. 18:11, while rewards are for the saved, Prov. 13:13. The salvation offered to all who believe is the same for everyone, Acts 16:31; Heb. 10:39, while rewards will differ, Rev. 22:12. Salvation is a free gift, Isa. 55:1; Rom. 6:23, but rewards are earned, 1 Cor. 3:8. Salvation is received in the present, John 5:24; rewards are to be received in the future, Matt. 16:27. When the day for rewards has come, fire will test every man’s work. All that survives will be rewarded, and salvation will not be affected, 1 Cor. 3:11–15. Every man will have praise of God, 1 Cor. 4:5. Keeping the precepts of Scripture has always brought great reward, Psa. 19:11. Christ spoke of rewards as being in Heaven, Matt. 5:12. He will bring them with Him at His return, Rev. 22:12. A reward is to be given even for the offering of a cup of cold water, Matt. 10:42. God is a rewarder of them that diligently seek Him, Heb. 11:6. It is a worthy motive to serve Him with the promised rewards in view. Even Moses “had respect unto the recompense of the reward,” Heb. 11:26. All believers are encouraged to have full confidence in the fulfillment of everything God has promised, Heb. 10:35–37; Prov. 11:18. LIVE GODLY AND RECEIVE THE REWARDS. Everlastingsalvationchurchofgod.com PayPal.me/donatetochurch PASTOR ANDRA HIGGINBOTHAM
CHILD OF GOD, OR CHILD OF SATAN Love reveals a person’s true nature; love shows that a person is either a child of God or of the devil. Note who it is that is not of God. ⇒ The person who does not live righteously is not of God. The person who does not live a pure and holy life is not of God. ⇒ The person who does not love his brother is not of God. The person who mistreats, abuses, ignores, neglects or takes advantage of his brother is not of God. This is easily seen: God is holy, righteous, and pure and God is love. Therefore any person who does not live a holy, righteous, and pure life and who does not love could not be of God. His life stands opposed to all that God stands for. The things that he does are not of God; they are not of the nature of God. Now, of whose nature are they? Whose nature is unholy, unrighteous, impure; and whose nature is unloving? Not God’s nature, but the devil’s nature. This is not a pleasant thought, but Scripture declares emphatically that we are either a child of God or of the devil. What determines whose child we are? Our lives reveal exactly whose child we are. ⇒ The person who lives a righteous life and who loves his brother takes his nature from God. ⇒ The person who lives an unrighteous life and who mistreats his brother takes his nature from the devil. We can look at our nature and tell whose child we are. If we live righteous, pure, and holy lives and love one another, we have the nature of God. If we live unrighteous, impure, and unholy lives and mistreat one another, we have the nature of the devil. It is that clear: there is no middle ground. God’s nature is not that of unrighteousness and hate. God is righteous and loving; therefore, the person who lives a righteous life and who loves his brother is of God. Now, note a significant fact: John defines righteousness as love. This is what he is really saying in this verse: the person who does not do righteousness is the person who does not love his brother. Righteousness is love, and unrighteousness is failing to love. This is seen by scanning this passage: ⇒ Note verse 12: Cain did not love his brother so he murdered him and did an unrighteous deed. ⇒ Note verse 14: the proof that we have passed from death to life is our love, our righteous behavior toward our brother. ⇒ Note verse 15: love is not unrighteous acts, hate, or murder. ⇒ Note verse 16: love is the righteous act of God in giving His Son to die for us. ⇒ Note verse 16 again: love is laying down our lives for our brother. ⇒ Note verse 17: love is compassion and giving to meet the needs of our brother. The point is this: love is action—righteous deeds in action. And righteousness is love—loving deeds in action. This is exactly what John declared earlier. “He that loveth his brother abideth in the light, and there is none occasion of stumbling in him” (1 Jn. 2:10). This is also what Paul declared in that memorable passage of Romans, a passage that we should live in and preach and teach as long as we live upon earth. “Owe no man anything, but to love one another: for he that loveth another hath fulfilled the law. For this, Thou shalt not commit adultery, Thou shalt not kill, Thou shalt not steal, Thou shalt not bear false witness, Thou shalt not covet; and if there be any other commandment, it is briefly comprehended in this saying, namely, Thou shalt love thy neighbour as thyself. Love worketh no ill to his neighbour: therefore love is the fulfilling of the law” (Ro. 13:8–10). How do we know if we really love God? We can look at love and tell. Do we love our brothers? Or, do we hold things within us toward others? Do we think evil thoughts about them? Talk about them? Criticize, murmur, grumble, gossip, or backbite them? Do we do evil against them? This is the nature of the devil—to tear down and destroy—not the nature of God. Therefore, if we do these kinds of things, we are revealing that we are not the children of God, but children of the devil. Love reveals whose child we are. “Blessed are the peacemakers [an act of love]: for they shall be called the children of God” (Mt. 5:9). “Jesus said unto him, Thou shalt love the Lord thy God with all thy heart, and with all thy soul, and with all thy mind. This is the first and great commandment. And the second is like unto it, Thou shalt love thy neighbour as thyself” (Mt. 22:37–39). “A new commandment I give unto you, That ye love one another; as I have loved you, that ye also love one another. By this shall all men know that ye are my disciples, if ye have love one to another” (Jn. 13:34–35). “Let love be without dissimulation [hypocrisy]. Abhor that which is evil; cleave to that which is good” (Ro. 12:9). 1 John 3:10 This is the way God’s children are distinguished from the devil’s children. Everyone who doesn’t do what is right or love other believers isn’t God’s child. I HOPE YOU FOUND THIS QUICK STUDY TO BE HELPFUL. DO YOU ENJOY THE QUICK STUDIES? SHOULD I CONTINUE THESE QUICK STUDIES? Everlastingsalvationchurchofgod.com PayPal.me/donatetochurch PASTOR ANDRA HIGGINBOTHAM
LIFE AND DEATH Only in the Bible can any satisfying light be found on the mysterious and baffling subjects of life and death, Deut. 30:19. In the beginning God breathed life into the nostrils of the man He had created, Gen. 2:7. That breath was the spirit of man. “The body without the spirit is dead,” Jas. 2:26. The normal life span is 70 years, Psa. 90:10. Those who keep God’s precepts ordinarily live longer than those who do not, Prov. 3:1, 2. Life is likened to a shadow, Psa. 144:4, and a vapor, Jas. 4:14. “A sound heart is the life of the flesh,” Prov. 14:30. “The life of the flesh is in the blood,” Lev. 17:11. By one man came death through disobedience, Gen. 2:17; Rom. 5:12. Under the permissive will of God, Satan has the power of death, Job 2:6. The fear of it brings men into bondage, Heb. 2:14, 15. Death is an enemy which will finally be destroyed, 1 Cor 15:26. Christ has the keys to it, Rev. 1:18. It will be banished from God’s new order, Rev. 21:4. For believers, “to die is gain,” Phil. 1:21. For all others, after death there is judgment, Heb. 9:27. Like Enoch and Elijah, believers who are living at the time of the translation of the church will never die, 1 Cor. 15:51, 52; 1 Thess. 4:14–18. All unbelievers will ultimately experience the second death, Rev. 20:14, 15. I HOPE YOU FOUND THIS QUICK STUDY TO BE A GREAT REFRESHER. DO YOU ENJOY AND RECEIVE FROM THESE QUICK STUDIES? Everlastingsalvationchurchofgod.com PayPal.me/donatetochurch PASTOR ANDRA HIGGINBOTHAM
Things the Sinner Cannot Do 1. Cannot reverse what God does. “I cannot go beyond the Word of the Lord” Num. 22:18 No one can straighten what is bent. No one can count what is not there. 2. Cannot find God by Himself. “I cannot perceive Him” Job 23:8, 9 However, if I go east, he isn’t there. If I go west, I can’t find him. If I go northward, where he is at work, I can’t observe him. If I turn southward, I can’t see him. 3. Cannot supply what is lacking. “What is crooked cannot be made straight” Eccles. 1:15 No one can straighten what is bent. No one can count what is not there. 4. Cannot please God—Rom. 8:8 Those who are under the control of the corrupt nature can’t please God. 5. Cannot see or enter the Kingdom of God—John 3:3, 5 Jesus replied to Nicodemus, “I can guarantee this truth: No one can see God’s kingdom without being born from above.” Jesus answered Nicodemus, “I can guarantee this truth: No one can enter God’s kingdom without being born of water and the Spirit. 6. Cannot be where Christ is. “Whither I go ye cannot come” (John 8:21, 22, 43 Jesus spoke to the Pharisees again. He said, “I’m going away, and you’ll look for me. But you will die because of your sin. You can’t go where I’m going.” Then the Jews asked, “Is he going to kill himself? Is that what he means when he says, ‘You can’t go where I’m going’?” Why don’t you understand the language I use? Is it because you can’t understand the words I use? 7. Cannot pass the gulf which divides the saved from the unsaved in the next life—Luke 16:26 Besides, a wide area separates us. People couldn’t cross it in either direction even if they wanted to.’ I HOPE YOU FOUND THIS QUICK STUDY TO BE INTERESTING AND HELPFUL. Everlastingsalvationchurchofgod.com PayPal.me/donatetochurch PASTOR ANDRA HIGGINBOTHAM
SEEK GOD, AND LIVE GODLY Matthew 6:33, NLT Seek the Kingdom of God above all else, and live righteously, and he will give you everything you need. WE MUST LIVE OUR LIFE SEEKING GOD FIRST. WE MUST LIVE A RIGHTEOUS LIFE. IF WE WILL DO THOSE TWO THINGS GOD WILL BLESS US WITH ALL THAT WE NEED. Proverbs 2:8 GNB He protects those who treat others fairly, and guards those who are devoted to him. IF WE WILL TREAT PEOPLE FAIRLY, AND DEVOTE OUR LIFE TO GOD, GOD WILL PROTECT US AND GUARD US. ALLOW THESE VERSES TO BE A GUIDE UNTO YOUR LIFE. Everlastingsalvationchurchofgod.com PASTOR ANDRA HIGGINBOTHAM
GOD SPEAKS TO US ABOUT THE BODY OF FAITH Hebrews 11:1 Faith assures us of things we expect and convinces us of the existence of things we cannot see. John 10:27 My sheep respond to my voice, and I know who they are. They follow me, Philippians 2:5 Have the same attitude that Christ Jesus had. Proverbs 3:5–7 Trust the LORD with all your heart, and do not rely on your own understanding. In all your ways acknowledge him, and he will make your paths smooth. Do not consider yourself wise. Fear the LORD, and turn away from evil. Romans 15:1 So those of us who have a strong ⸤faith⸥ must be patient with the weaknesses of those whose ⸤faith⸥ is not so strong. We must not think only of ourselves. We should all be concerned about our neighbor and the good things that will build his faith. TAKE A MOMENT TO STUDY THESE VERSES. THEY ARE DEEPER THAN THEY APPEAR. Everlastingsalvationchurchofgod.com PayPal.me/donatetochurch PASTOR ANDRA HIGGINBOTHAM
OUR GOD SPEAKS TO US ABOUT REPENTANCE 2 Chronicles 7:14 However, if my people, who are called by my name, will humble themselves, pray, search for me, and turn from their evil ways, then I will hear ⸤their prayer⸥ from heaven, forgive their sins, and heal their country. Ezekiel 18:21–23 “But suppose a wicked person turns away from all the sins that he has done. He obeys all my laws and does what is fair and right. He will certainly live. He will not die. All the rebellious things that he did will not be remembered. He will live because of the right things that he did. I don’t want wicked people to die.” declares the Almighty LORD. “I want them to turn from their evil ways and live. Romans 2:4 Do you have contempt for God, who is very kind to you, puts up with you, and deals patiently with you? Don’t you realize that it is God’s kindness that is trying to lead you to him and change the way you think and act? Matthew 3:1–2 Later, John the Baptizer appeared in the desert of Judea. His message was, “Turn to God and change the way you think and act, because the kingdom of heaven is near.” REPENTANCE IS NECESSARY, CHECK YOURSELF, RECOGNIZE, MAKE THE NECESSARY CHANGES. WE ARE NOT PREFECT, THERE ARE SOME THINGS WE NEED TO TURN AWAY FROM AND COME TO GOD. DO YOU AGREE? Everlastingsalvationchurchofgod.com PayPal.me/donatetochurch PASTOR ANDRA HIGGINBOTHAM
