Children’s reponsibility to honour their parents “Honour” implies respect, obedience and care for the parents’ needs. Exodus 20:12 “Honor your father and your mother, so that you may live for a long time in the land the LORD your God is giving you. Deuteronomy 5:16 “Honor your father and your mother as the LORD your God has commanded you. Then you will live for a long time, and things will go well for you in the land the LORD your God is giving you. Leviticus 19:3 “Respect your mother and father. Observe my days of rest as holy days. I am the LORD your God. Ephesians 6:1–3 Children, obey your parents because you are Christians. This is the right thing to do. “Honor your father and mother that everything may go well for you, and you may have a long life on earth.” This is an important commandment with a promise. Mark 10:19 You know the commandments: Never murder. Never commit adultery. Never steal. Never give false testimony. Never cheat. Honor your father and mother.” This honor is due especially to mothers in old age Proverbs 23:22 Listen to your father since you are his son, and do not despise your mother because she is old. Penalties for disobeying parents Exodus 21:15 “Whoever hits his father or mother must be put to death. Proverbs 20:20 The lamp of the person who curses his father and mother will be snuffed out in total darkness. Matthew 15:4 For example, God said, ‘Honor your father and your mother’ and ‘Whoever curses father or mother must be put to death.’ Following Jesus Christ involves a commitment to him even deeper than love of one’s parents Luke 14:26 “If people come to me and are not ready to abandon their fathers, mothers, wives, children, brothers, and sisters, as well as their own lives, they cannot be my disciples. Matthew 10:37 “The person who loves his father or mother more than me does not deserve to be my disciple. The person who loves a son or daughter more than me does not deserve to be my disciple. I HOPE YOU ENJOYED AND RECEIVED FROM THIS QUICK STUDY. HOW DO YOU FEEL ABOUT THIS QUICK STUDY? Everlastingsalvationchurchofgod.com PayPal.me/donatetochurch PASTOR ANDRA HIGGINBOHAM
STOP COMPLAINING ABOUT GOD Numbers 14:20-35 The LORD said, “I forgive them, as you have asked. But as I live and as the glory of the LORD fills the whole earth, I solemnly swear that none of the people who saw my glory and the miraculous signs I did in Egypt and in the desert will see the land which I promised their ancestors. They have tested me now ten times and refused to obey me. None of those who treat me with contempt will see it! But because my servant Caleb has a different attitude and has wholeheartedly followed me, I’ll bring him to the land he already explored. His descendants will possess it. (The Amalekites and Canaanites are living in the valleys.) Tomorrow you must turn around, go back into the desert, and follow the road that goes to the Red Sea.” Then the LORD said to Moses and Aaron, “How long must I put up with this wicked community that keeps complaining about me? I’ve heard the complaints the Israelites are making about me. So tell them, ‘As I live, declares the LORD, I solemnly swear I will do everything to you that you said I would do. Your bodies will drop dead in this desert. All of you who are at least 20 years old, who were registered and listed, and who complained about me will die. I raised my hand and swore an oath to give you this land to live in. But none of you will enter it except Caleb (son of Jephunneh) and Joshua (son of Nun). You said your children would be taken as prisoners of war. Instead, I will bring them into the land you rejected, and they will enjoy it. However, your bodies will drop dead in this desert. Your children will be shepherds in the desert for 40 years. They will suffer for your unfaithfulness until the last of your bodies lies dead in the desert. For 40 days you explored the land. So for 40 years—one year for each day—you will suffer for your sins and know what it means for me to be against you.’ I, the LORD, have spoken. I swear I will do these things to all the people in this whole wicked community who have joined forces against me. They will meet their end in this desert. Here they will die!” So the men Moses sent to explore the land died in front of the LORD from a plague. They died because they had returned and made the whole community complain about Moses by spreading lies about the land.Of all the men who went to explore the land, only Joshua (son of Nun) and Caleb (son of Jephunneh) survived. BE CAREFUL HOW YOU TEST GOD. IT IS NOT GOOD TO CONTINUE COMPLAINING ABOUT GOD. DISOBEYING GOD COMES WITH CONSEQUENCES. IT IS NOT WISE TO DISRESPECT GOD. Everlastingsalvationchurchofgod.com PayPal.me/donatetochurch PASTOR ANDRA HIGGINBOTHAM
Let us be Eager to Pursue Godliness God didn’t save us so we could do whatever we want and still go to heaven. He saved us so we could once again live our lives devoted to Him. “For the grace of God has appeared, bringing salvation for all people, training us to renounce ungodliness and worldly passions, and to live self-controlled, upright, and godly lives in the present age” (Titus 2:11–12). It’s God’s desire that we live according to the righteousness He’s bestowed on us through faith in Jesus Christ. In Him, we are made new, “created after the likeness of God in true righteousness and holiness” (Eph. 4:24) through the gift of the Holy Spirit. Once we were slaves to sin, but now we are not. There was a time we could not help but give in to our sinful passions, but now we have the power to overcome them. So do it, says the Lord. Live like you’re a child of God and seek to imitate your Father (Eph. 5:1). “Pursue righteousness, godliness, faith, love, steadfastness, gentleness. Fight the good fight of faith. Take hold of the eternal life to which you were called” (1 Tim. 6:11–12). In other words, pursue God, who is all those attributes and more. Do not set your hopes “on the uncertainty of riches, but on God” (1 Tim. 6:17). Secure your mind on Christ. Participate in the expansion of His kingdom and seek the things that are above. Don’t be consumed with earthly possessions, but store up for yourselves treasures in heaven. When you do, you will live the life God desires for you. WHO OR WHAT ARE YOU PURSUING AS YOU GO ABOUT YOUR DAILY WALK? HOW ARE YOU LIVING? CHECK YOURSELF. Everlastingsalvationchurchofgod.com PayPal.me/donatetochurch PASTOR ANDRA HIGGINBOTHAM
THINK ABOUT IT. 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. Deuteronomy 10:21 GNB Praise him — he is your God, and you have seen with your own eyes the great and astounding things that he has done for you. THINK ABOUT ALL THAT GOD HAS DONE FOR YOU. NOW RIGHT WHERE YOU ARE GIVE HIM SOME PRAISE!!! THANK YOU LORD!!! GLORY!!! HALLELUJAH!!! THANK YOU LORD!!! I HOPE YOU ENJOYED THIS QUICK REFRESHER. Everlastingsalvationchurchofgod.com PASTOR ANDRA HIGGINBOTHAM
GOD SPEAKS TO US ABOUT SEXUALITY Men and women are intended to complement one another and to take pleasure in one another. God has provided for the full and glad expression of this in marriage. Sexuality comes from God It was created by God Ge 1:27 So God created humans in his image. In the image of God he created them. He created them male and female. God intended men and women to complement one another 1Co 11:11-12 Yet, as believers in the Lord, women couldn’t exist without men and men couldn’t exist without women. As a woman came into existence from a man, so men come into existence by women, but everything comes from God. Perversions of sexuality Adultery Exodus 20:14 “Never commit adultery. Deuteronomy 5:18 “Never commit adultery. Hebrews 13:4 Marriage is honorable in every way, so husbands and wives should be faithful to each other. God will judge those who commit sexual sins, especially those who commit adultery. LUST Matthew 5:28 But I can guarantee that whoever looks with lust at a woman has already committed adultery in his heart. Ephesians 4:19 Since they no longer have any sense of shame, they have become promiscuous. They practice every kind of sexual perversion with a constant desire for more. Ephesians 5:3 Don’t let sexual sin, perversion of any kind, or greed even be mentioned among you. This is not appropriate behavior for God’s holy people. Colossians 3:5 Therefore, put to death whatever is worldly in you: your sexual sin, perversion, passion, lust, and greed (which is the same thing as worshiping wealth). Homosexuality Romans 1:26–27 For this reason God allowed their shameful passions to control them. Their women have exchanged natural sexual relations for unnatural ones. Likewise, their men have given up natural sexual relations with women and burn with lust for each other. Men commit indecent acts with men, so they experience among themselves the punishment they deserve for their perversion. Leviticus 18:22 Never have sexual intercourse with a man as with a woman. It is disgusting. Sexual perversion will be punished 1 Corinthians 6:9–10 Don’t you know that wicked people won’t inherit God’s kingdom? Stop deceiving yourselves! People who continue to commit sexual sins, who worship false gods, those who commit adultery, homosexuals, or thieves, those who are greedy or drunk, who use abusive language, or who rob people will not inherit God’s kingdom. Revelation 21:8 But cowardly, unfaithful, and detestable people, murderers, sexual sinners, sorcerers, idolaters, and all liars will find themselves in the fiery lake of burning sulfur. This is the second death.” Sexual perversion can be cleansed 1 Corinthians 6:11 That’s what some of you were! But you have been washed and made holy, and you have received God’s approval in the name of the Lord Jesus Christ and in the Spirit of our God. I HOPE YOU FOUND THIS QUICK STUDY TO BE HELPFUL. Everlastingsalvationchurchofgod.com PayPal.me/donatetochurch PASTOR ANDRA HIGGINBOTHAM
WE ALL FALL SHORT Romans 3:22–23 Everyone who believes has God’s approval through faith in Jesus Christ. There is no difference between people. Because all people have sinned, they have fallen short of God’s glory. Galatians 5:16–17 Let me explain further. Live your life as your spiritual nature directs you. Then you will never follow through on what your corrupt nature wants. What your corrupt nature wants is contrary to what your spiritual nature wants, and what your spiritual nature wants is contrary to what your corrupt nature wants. They are opposed to each other. As a result, you don’t always do what you intend to do. 1 Peter 2:16 Live as free people, but don’t hide behind your freedom when you do evil. Instead, use your freedom to serve God. LET US NOT FORGET THAT NONE OF US ARE PERFECT, WE ALL SIN, WE ALL FALL SHORT OF THE GLORY OF GOD. WE ALL HAVE TIMES WHEN WE DON’T DO OR SAY WHAT WE INTEND TO DO OR SAY. WE ALL FALL SHORT AT TIMES. YES WE ALL SAY THINGS WE SHOULDN’T SAY AND DO THINGS WE SHOULDN’T DO. IT’S PART OF THE CHRISTIAN WARFARE, BUT DON’T GIVE UP, DON’T ALLOW ANYONE TO CONDEMN YOU, JUST CONTINUE STRIVING TO BE LIKE CHRIST. THINK ABOUT IT. Everlastingsalvationchurchofgod.com PayPal.me/donatetochurch PASTOR ANDRA HIGGINBOTHAM
SIGNS OF JESUS IS COMING BACK Jesus is coming again. It’s in the Bible, John 14:2-3, NKJV. “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 to Myself; that where I am, there you may be also.” What are some signs? It’s in the Bible, Matthew 24:3, NKJV. “As Jesus was sitting on the Mount of Olives, the disciples came to him privately. ‘Tell us,’ they said, ‘when will this happen, and what will be the sign of your coming and of the end of the age?’” There will be wars, though they may seem overwhelming, it is not the end. It’s in the Bible, Matthew 24:6, NKJV. “You will hear of wars and rumors of wars, but see to it that you are not alarmed. Such things must happen, but the end is still to come.” Earthquakes and famines, and all the signs are only the contractions of what’s coming. It’s in the Bible, Matthew 24:7-8, NKJV. “There will be famines and earthquakes in various places. All these are the beginning of birth pains.” What moral conditions will be characteristic of society in the last days? It’s in the Bible, II Timothy 3:1-5, NIV. “But mark this: There will be terrible times in the last days. People will be lovers of themselves, lovers of money, boastful, proud, abusive, disobedient to their parents, ungrateful, unholy, without love, unforgiving, slanderous, without self-control, brutal, not lovers of the good, treacherous, rash, conceited, lovers of pleasure rather than lovers of God—having a form of godliness but denying its power. Have nothing to do with them.” The gospel will go to the whole world and the end will come. It’s in the Bible, Matthew 24:14, NIV. “And this gospel of the kingdom will be preached in the whole world as a testimony to all nations, and then the end will come.” What are people to do when they see these things taking place? It’s in the Bible, Matthew 24:42-44, TLB. “So be prepared, for you don’t know what day your Lord is coming. Just as a man can prevent trouble from thieves by keeping watch for them, so you can avoid trouble by always being ready for My unannounced return.” I HOPE YOU FOUND THIS QUICK REFRESHER TO BE HELPFUL. Everlastingsalvationchurchofgod.com PayPal.me/donatetochurch PASTOR ANDRA HIGGINBOTHAM
ABILITIES OF GOD 2 Corinthians 9:8 And God is able to make all grace abound to you, so that always having all sufficiency in everything, you may have an abundance for every good deed; Matthew 10:28 Do not fear those who kill the body but are unable to kill the soul; but rather fear Him who is able to destroy both soul and body in hell. 1 Peter 4:10-11 Each of you as a good manager must use the gift that God has given you to serve others. Whoever speaks must speak God’s words. Whoever serves must serve with the strength God supplies so that in every way God receives glory through Jesus Christ. Glory and power belong to Jesus Christ forever and ever! Amen. ALLOW THESE VERSES TO BE A GUIDE UNTO YOUR LIFE. Everlastingsalvationchurchofgod.com PayPal.me/donatetochurch PASTOR ANDRA HIGGINBOTHAM
What Does The Bible Say About the Battle Being The Lord’s? Whether you’re facing a huge battle in your life or a smaller one, it’s reassuring to know God is fighting for you. How do we know this? Time after time, in scripture, we read how God came through for his people. Sometimes, things got worse before they got better. But there was never a time when God deserted those who loved him. It’s the same today. As followers of Christ, we can rest assured that our Father in Heaven loves us and cares for us. He sent his son to rescue us from our biggest problem: separation from God due to our sins. As God’s children, we know that he is fighting for us in the battles we face. Not convinced yet? Here are some things to consider. The battle is not yours In 2 Chronicles 20:15 we read how King Jehoshaphat, king of Judah, is facing one of the biggest battles of his life. He gets word that his arch-enemies are marching toward his kingdom. With a small and ill-prepared army, he knows they are no match for these formidable foes. But King Jehoshaphat has one thing going for him: he trusts God and knows he can save them. So, the king assembles all the citizens of his kingdom, proclaims a fast, and prays, pleading for God’s mercy. In response, a well-known prophet stands up and speaks comforting words from the Lord. He says: Listen, King Jehoshaphat and all who live in Judah and Jerusalem! This is what the Lord says to you: ‘Do not be afraid or discouraged because of this vast army. For the battle is not yours, but God’s. (2 Chronicles 20:15 NIV) God heard the king and the people’s prayers. He caused the enemy armies to become so confused that they killed one another instead of the people of Judah. 2 Chronicles 20:15 “He said: “Listen, King Jehoshaphat and all who live in Judah and Jerusalem! This is what the Lord says to you: ‘Do not be afraid or discouraged because of this vast army. For the battle is not yours, but God’s.” Psalm 46:10 “He says, “Be still, and know that I am God; I will be exalted among the nations, I will be exalted in the earth.” 1 Samuel 17:47 “And all those assembled here will know that it is not by sword or spear that the LORD saves; for the battle is the LORD’s, and He will give all of you into our hands.” Exodus 14:13 “But Moses told the people, “Do not be afraid. Stand firm and you will see the LORD’s salvation, which He will accomplish for you today; for the Egyptians you see today, you will never see again.” 2 Chronicles 32:8 “With him is only the arm of flesh, but with us is the LORD our God to help us and to fight our battles.” So the people were strengthened by the words of Hezekiah king of Judah.” Isaiah 54:17 “no weapon that is fashioned against you shall succeed, and you shall refute every tongue that rises against you in judgment. This is the heritage of the servants of the Lord and their vindication[a] from me, declares the Lord.” Psalm 20:1 “May the LORD answer you in the day of trouble; may the name of the God of Jacob protect you.” Zechariah 4:6 “So he said to me, “This is the word of the Lord to Zerubbabel: ‘Not by might nor by power, but by my Spirit,’ says the Lord Almighty.” The Lord is fighting for you. So, how does knowing the story of King Jehoshaphat help us get through our daily battles? Reading this story reminds us that God wants to turn to him and ask for help in every battle we face. He wants us to be free from the paralyzing fear that closes our eyes to the truth of God’s love and care for us. Fear is a bully. It tells us the worst-case scenario before anything even happens. It tells us that God doesn’t love us. Trusting the Lord won’t prevent battles from occurring in our lives, but Jesus will help us face our battles and walk with us as we go through them. God knows how hard life can be and will be with us, taking care of us. Believing this gives us freedom and faith that…the battle is not ours but God’s. “When you pass through the waters, I will be with you; and when you pass through the rivers, they will not sweep over you. When you walk through the fire, you will not be burned; the flames will not set you ablaze. For I am the Lord your God, the Holy One of Israel, your Savior”…(Isaiah 43:2-3 NIV) The LORD will fight for you; you need only to be still.” (Exodus 14:14 NIV) Deuteronomy 3:22 “Do not be afraid of them, for the LORD your God Himself will fight for you.”‘ Exodus 15:3 “The LORD is a warrior; The LORD is His name. Revelation 19:11 “Then I saw heaven standing open, and there before me was a white horse. And its rider is called Faithful and True. With righteousness He judges and wages war.” Psalm 24:8 “Who is this King of Glory? The LORD strong and mighty, the LORD mighty in battle.” “But the Lord stands beside me like a great warrior. Before him my persecutors will stumble. They cannot defeat me. They will fail and be thoroughly humiliated. Their dishonor will never be forgotten.” Jeremiah 20:11 “The Sovereign Lord is my strength; he makes my feet like the feet of a deer, he enables me to tread on the heights.” Habakkuk 3:19 2 Chronicles 32:7 “Be strong and courageous! Do not be afraid or discouraged before the king of Assyria and the vast army with him, for there is a greater One with us than with him.” DID YOU FIND THIS WORD FROM GOD TO BE OF ANY HELP TO YOU? Everlastingsalvationchurchofgod.com PayPal.me/donatetochurch PASTOR ANDRA HIGGINBOTHAM
