Abiding in Christ depends upon holding on to his teaching 1 John 2:24 Make sure that the message you heard from the beginning lives in you. If that message lives in you, you will also live in the Son and in the Father. John 8:31 So Jesus said to those Jews who believed in him, “If you live by what I say, you are truly my disciples. 2 John 9 Everyone who doesn’t continue to teach what Christ taught doesn’t have God. The person who continues to teach what Christ taught has both the Father and the Son. It depends on obedience to him James 1:25 However, the person who continues to study God’s perfect laws that make people free and who remains committed to them will be blessed. People like that don’t merely listen and forget; they actually do what God’s laws say. John 15:10 If you obey my commandments, you will live in my love. I have obeyed my Father’s commandments, and in that way I live in his love. 1 John 2:6 Those who say that they live in him must live the same way he lived. SELF-CHECK: HOW ARE YOU LIVING? ARE YOU LIVING IN GOD? DO YOU OBEY HIS COMMANDS? DOES YOUR LIFESTYLE REFLECT THE LIFE OF JESUS? TOO MANY PEOPLE ARE NOT WHO THEY THINK THEY ARE. Everlastingsalvationchurchofgod.com PayPal.me/donatetochurch PASTOR ANDRA HIGGINBOTHAM
Victorious Life 1 John 5:4 ESV For everyone who has been born of God overcomes the world. And this is the victory that has overcome the world—our faith. Romans 8:37 ESV No, in all these things we are more than conquerors through him who loved us. 1 Corinthians 15:57 ESV But thanks be to God, who gives us the victory through our Lord Jesus Christ. Romans 16:20 ESV The God of peace will soon crush Satan under your feet. The grace of our Lord Jesus Christ be with you. Philippians 4:19 ESV And my God will supply every need of yours according to his riches in glory in Christ Jesus. GOD’S CHILDREN ARE MEANT TO BE VICTORIOUS. EXPECT THE VICTORY. RECEIVE THE VICTORY!!! GLOOORRRY!!! HALLELUJAH!!! Everlastingsalvationchurchofgod.com PayPal.me/donatetochurch PASTOR ANDRA HIGGINBOTHAM
Blessings of the Upright One said of a devoted Christian man in his business, “He commands my custom, for all his goods are Christian;” and of another, “He sells a Christian shovel.” When we are “upright in heart and life and business, we need no recommendation.” The upright man, and not the leaner, is ever the blessed one. If the Book of Proverbs is carefully studied, it will be found there are many blessings which come to the upright. 1. The upright “dwell in the land” of promised blessing—2:21. 2. The upright have Jehovah as their strength—10:29. 3. The integrity and righteousness of the upright bring guidance and deliverance—11:3, 6, 11. 4. The upright are a joy to the Lord, and He delights to answer their prayer—11:20; 15:8. 5. The upright find that the Lord keeps them, causes them to flourish, and obtain definite direction—13:6; 14:11; 21:29. 6. They find “good things in possession” (28:10). “No good will Jehovah withhold from them who walk uprightly” (Psa. 84:11). HOW ARE YOU LIVING? THERE ARE BENEFITS TO LIVING UPRIGHT. LIVE AN UPRIGHT LIFE AND BE BLESSED BY GOD. Everlastingsalvationchurchofgod.com PayPal.me/donnatetochurch PASTOR ANDRA HIGGINBOTHAM
Blunders The blunders of God’s saints, as recorded in His Word, are meant to be beacons to tell us to keep off the rocks upon which they went. 1. David’s laziness, and his consequent fall—2 Sam. 11:1–4. 2. Solomon’s lustfulness, and the consequent backsliding—1 Kings 11:1–6. 3. Hezekiah’s pride, and its resultant captivity—Isa. 39:1–8. 4. Miriam’s jealousy, and the leprosy which came to her as punishment—Num. 12:1–10. 5. Lot’s selfishness, and his humiliating rebuke from the Sodomites—Gen. 13:11; 19:9. 6. Peter’s self-confidence, and his consequent downward course—Luke 22:33. 7. The self-exultation of the Church at Corinth, and the resultant chastisement—1 Cor. 11:30, are all recorded that we may avoid their mistakes and escape their punishments. ALLOW THIS WORD FROM GOD TO BE A GUIDE UNTO YOUR LIFE ON WHAT NOT TO DO. Everlastingsalvationchurchofgod.com PayPal.me/donatetochurch PASTOR ANDRA HIGGINBOTHAM
ABIDING IN CHRIST The NT stresses the need for believers to remain in Christ. The reality of this close personal relationship with Jesus Christ is expressed in obedience to his word and is essential to effective discipleship. John 15:4–9 Live in me, and I will live in you. A branch cannot produce any fruit by itself. It has to stay attached to the vine. In the same way, you cannot produce fruit unless you live in me. “I am the vine. You are the branches. Those who live in me while I live in them will produce a lot of fruit. But you can’t produce anything without me. Whoever doesn’t live in me is thrown away like a branch and dries up. Branches like this are gathered, thrown into a fire, and burned. If you live in me and what I say lives in you, then ask for anything you want, and it will be yours. You give glory to my Father when you produce a lot of fruit and therefore show that you are my disciples. “I have loved you the same way the Father has loved me. So live in my love. Luke 9:62 Jesus said to him, “Whoever starts to plow and looks back is not fit for God’s kingdom.” John 6:67 So Jesus asked the twelve apostles, “Do you want to leave me too?” Galatians 4:9 But now you know God, or rather, God knows you. So how can you turn back again to the powerless and bankrupt principles of this world? Why do you want to become their slaves all over again? Colossians 2:6 You received Christ Jesus the Lord, so continue to live as Christ’s people. Hebrews 12:1–3 Since we are surrounded by so many examples ⸤of faith⸥, we must get rid of everything that slows us down, especially sin that distracts us. We must run the race that lies ahead of us and never give up. We must focus on Jesus, the source and goal of our faith. He saw the joy ahead of him, so he endured death on the cross and ignored the disgrace it brought him. Now he holds the honored position—the one next to God the Father on the heavenly throne. Think about Jesus, who endured opposition from sinners, so that you don’t become tired and give up. DON’T GIVE UP, DON’T TURN BACK, WE MUST STAY CLOSE TO JESUS, WE MUST ABIDE IN CHRIST. LET US CONTINUE TO LIVE AS CHRIST’S PEOPLE. LET US CONTINUE TO PRODUCE FRUIT AND BE BLESSED BY GOD. Everlastingsalvationchurchofgod.com PayPal.me/donatetochurch PASTOR ANDRA HIGGINBOTHAM
SOMETIMES WE NEED TO HAVE A TALK WITH GOD. Psalm 119:149 In keeping with your mercy, hear my voice. O LORD, give me a new life guided by your regulations. Psalm 119:76 Let your mercy comfort me as you promised. Psalm 119:88 Give me a new life through your mercy so that I may obey the written instructions, which came⸥ from your mouth. Psalm 51:1 Have pity on me, O God, in keeping with your mercy. In keeping with your unlimited compassion, wipe out my rebellious acts. Psalm 40:11 Do not withhold your compassion from me, O LORD. May your mercy and your truth always protect me. Titus 3:4–6 However, when God our Savior made his kindness and love for humanity appear, he saved us, but not because of anything we had done to gain his approval. Instead, because of his mercy he saved us through the washing in which the Holy Spirit gives us new birth and renewal. God poured a generous amount of the Spirit on us through Jesus Christ our Savior. WE SERVE A PRAYER HEARING GOD, AND A PRAYER ANSWERING GOD. OUR GOD LISTENS TO US AND LOVE IT WHEN WE TALK TO HIM. OUR GOD LOVES IT WHEN WE DEPEND ON HIM. Everlastingsalvationchurchofgod.com PalPal.me/donatetochurch PASTOR ANDRA HIGGINBOTHAM
Sexual sin is ultimately deadly (Prov. 7) For the third time, Solomon calls the young person back to the Word of God (vv. 1–5), because keeping God’s commandments is a matter of life or death. The adulteress lives on a dead-end street: “Her house is the way to hell, going down to the chambers of death” (v. 27). The familiar phrase “apple of your eye” (v. 2) refers to the pupil of the eye which the ancients thought was a sphere like an apple. We protect our eyes because they’re valuable to us, and so should we honor and protect God’s Word by obeying it. Sexual sin often begins with undisciplined eyes and hands (Matt. 5:27–30), but the heart of the problem is … the heart (Prov. 7:2–3). If we love God’s wisdom as we love those in our family, we wouldn’t want to visit the house of the harlot. This chapter vividly describes a naive young man who falls into the trap of the adulteress. Note the steps that lead to his destruction. He tempts himself (vv. 6–9). You get the impression that this young man is either terribly dumb or very proud, convinced that he can play with sin and get away with it. But he’s only tempting himself and heading for trouble. To begin with, he’s out at night (“walking in darkness”—see 2:13; John 3:19–21; 1 John 1:5–7), and he’s deliberately walking near the place of temptation and danger. He didn’t heed the wise counsel of the Lord, “Remove your way far from her, and do not go near the door of her house” (5:8, NKJV). God’s Word wasn’t controlling his feet (3:26; 4:27). During more than forty years of ministry, I’ve listened to many sad stories from people who have indulged in sexual sin and suffered greatly; in almost every instance, the people deliberately put themselves into the place of temptation and danger. Unlike Job, they didn’t make “a covenant with [their] eyes not to look lustfully at a girl” (Job 31:1, NIV), nor did they follow the example of Joseph and flee from temptation (Gen. 39:7ff; 2 Tim. 2:22). We can’t help being tempted, but we can certainly help tempting ourselves. He is tempted by the woman (vv. 10–20). Like the deadly spider in the web, the woman was watching at the window, ready to pounce on her prey. She was a man’s wife, but when he was out of town, she dressed like a prostitute so she could attract the men who were searching for her services (Gen. 38:14–15; Ezek. 16:16). While her husband was away, she saw no reason why she shouldn’t make some money and enjoy herself at the same time. She’d been in the streets, looking for victims (Prov. 7:11–12), but now one was coming right to her door! She caught him (Gen. 39:12), kissed him (Prov. 5:3), and convinced him that it was an opportune time for him to visit her. Before leaving town, her husband had gone with her to the temple where he’d sacrificed a peace offering (Lev. 7:11–21), and she had some of the meat at home. She would prepare him a feast that he would never forget. “This is the way of an adulterous woman: She eats and wipes her mouth, and says, ‘I have done no wickedness’ ” (Prov. 30:20, NKJV). She appeals to the young man’s male ego as she flatters him and makes him think he’s very special to her. What she’s offering to him she would never offer to anyone else! She appeals to his imagination as she describes her beautiful bed and the expensive spices that perfume it. She assures him that nobody will find out about it (except that somebody’s watching, 7:6) and that her husband won’t be home for many days. They have plenty of time to enjoy themselves. He tempts the Lord (vv. 21–27). When we pray, “Lead us not into temptation” (Matt. 6:13), we know that God doesn’t tempt us (James 1:13–16); yet we may tempt ourselves, tempt others, and even tempt God (Ex. 17:1–7; Num. 14:22; Deut. 6:16; Ps. 78:18, 56; 1 Cor. 10:9). We tempt God when we deliberately disobey Him and put ourselves into situations so difficult that only God can deliver us. It’s as though we “dare Him” to do something. The youth made a sudden decision to follow the woman, and when he did, he began to act like an animal. He was no longer a young man, made in the image of God, but an ox going to the slaughter or a bird walking into the trap. Human beings are the only creatures in God’s creation who can choose what kind of creatures they want to be. God wants us to be sheep (Ps. 23:1; John 10; 1 Peter 2:25), but there are other options, such as horses or mules (Ps. 32:9), or even hogs and dogs (2 Peter 2:22). When we live outside the will of God, we lose our privileges as human beings made in His divine image. By going to her house, her table, and her bed, the young man willfully disobeyed God’s Law, but the Lord didn’t intervene. He allowed the youth to indulge in his sensual appetites and suffer the consequences. God could have stopped him, but He didn’t, because the Word says, “You shall not tempt [put to the test] the Lord your God” (Matt. 4:7; Deut. 6:16). If instead of tempting the Lord, the youth had looked up to the Lord and remembered His Word (Prov. 7:24), looked within and kept his heart focused on God’s truth (v. 25), and looked ahead to see the terrible consequences of his sin (vv. 26–27), he would have turned around and fled from the harlot’s clutches. Society today not only smiles at sexual sin, it actually approves it and encourages it. Perversions the very mention of which would have shocked people fifty years ago are openly discussed today and are even made the subject of novels, movies, and TV dramas. What Paul saw in his day and described in Romans 1:18–32 is now apparent in our own day, but people resent it if you call these practices “sin.” After all, “Everybody’s doing it.” But the Gospel is still “the power of God unto salvation” (Rom. 1:16) and Christ can still change people’s lives (1 Cor. 6:9–11). It isn’t enough for Christians to protest the evil; we must also practice the good (Matt. 5:13–16) and proclaim the good news that sinners can become new creatures in Christ (2 Cor. 5:17). If the world had more light, there would be less darkness. If the world had more salt, there would be less decay. If the world heard more truth, there would be less deception. We have a job to do! ARE YOU ENJOYING AND RECEIVING FROM OUR DEEP STUDIES? SHOULD WE CONTINUE OUR DEEP STUDIES? Everlastingsalvationchurchofgod.com PayPal.me/donatetochurch PASTOR ANDRA HIGGINBOTHAM
Offences Against the Holy Spirit Ephesians 4:30 Don’t give God’s Holy Spirit any reason to be upset with you. He has put his seal on you for the day you will be set free from the world of sin. 1 Thessalonians 5:19 Don’t put out the Spirit’s fire. Isaiah 63:10 But they rebelled and offended his Holy Spirit. So he turned against them as their enemy; he fought against them. Acts 5:9 Then Peter said to her, “How could you and your husband agree to test the Lord’s Spirit? Those who buried your husband are standing at the door, and they will carry you outside for burial.” Hebrews 10:29 What do you think a person who shows no respect for the Son of God deserves? That person looks at the blood of the promise (the blood that made him holy) as no different from other people’s blood, and he insults the Spirit that God gave us out of his kindness. He deserves a much worse punishment. Matthew 12:31-32 So I can guarantee that people will be forgiven for any sin or cursing. However cursing the Spirit will not be forgiven. Whoever speaks a word against the Son of Man will be forgiven. But whoever speaks against the Holy Spirit will not be forgiven in this world or the next. IT IS NOT WISE TO OFFEND OR DISRESPECT THE HOLY SPIRIT. Everlastingsalvationchurchofgod.com PayPal.me/donatetochurch PASTOR ANDRA HIGGINBOTHAM
BENEFITS OF COMMITMENT TO GOD. Deuteronomy 30:20 Love the LORD your God, obey him, and be loyal to him. This will be your way of life, and it will mean a long life for you in the land that the LORD swore to give to your ancestors Abraham, Isaac, and Jacob. Proverbs 16:3 Entrust your efforts to the LORD, and your plans will succeed. Psalm 97:10 Let those who love the LORD hate evil. The one who guards the lives of his godly ones will rescue them from the power of wicked people. Proverbs 2:7–8 He has reserved priceless wisdom for decent people. He is a shield for those who walk in integrity in order to guard those on paths of justice and to watch over the way of his godly ones. Isaiah 1:19 If you are willing and obedient, you will eat the best from the land. Jeremiah 26:13 Now, change your ways and what you are doing, and listen to the LORD your God. Then the LORD will change his plan about the disaster that he intends to bring on you. THINK ABOUT IT. Everlastingsalvationchurchofgod.com PayPal.me/donatetochurch PASTOR ANDRA HIGGINBOTHAM
ANOTHER QUICK REFRESHER FROM GOD Ephesians 5:22-25 GW [22] Wives, place yourselves under your husbands’ authority as you have placed yourselves under the Lord’s authority. [23] The husband is the head of his wife as Christ is the head of the church. It is his body, and he is its Savior. [24] As the church is under Christ’s authority, so wives are under their husbands’ authority in everything. [25] Husbands, love your wives as Christ loved the church and gave his life for it. Titus 2:1-7 GW [1] Tell believers to live the kind of life that goes along with accurate teachings. [2] Tell older men to be sober. Tell them to be men of good character, to use good judgment, and to be well-grounded in faith, love, and endurance. [3] Tell older women to live their lives in a way that shows they are dedicated to God. Tell them not to be gossips or addicted to alcohol, but to be examples of virtue. [4] In this way they will teach young women to show love to their husbands and children, [5] to use good judgment, and to be morally pure. Also, tell them to teach young women to be homemakers, to be kind, and to place themselves under their husbands’ authority. Then no one can speak evil of God’s word. [6] Encourage young men to use good judgment. [7] Always set an example by doing good things. When you teach, be an example of moral purity and dignity. ALLOW THIS WORD FROM GOD TO BE A GUIDE UNTO YOUR LIFE. Everlastingsalvationchurchofgod.com PayPal.me/donatetochurch PASTOR ANDRA HIGGINBOTHAM
