House2HouseMD

The Mystery of Christ Made Known Normally a mystery is an unknown secret but in this context, it is a secret that has been revealed by God to His people. In our present study, Apostle Paul explains the mystery of Christ in Ephesians chapter 3. First, Paul tells the Ephesians that he is a “prisoner of Christ Jesus for the Gentiles”. Paul is writing from the prison (house arrest) in Rome. He ended up in prison because of his efforts to preach and bring the gospel to the non- Jews, the Gentiles. His own Jewish brothers accused him and wanted to kill him and he appealed to Caesar and now in prison in Rome. Ephesians 3: “For this reason I, Paul, the prisoner of Christ Jesus for you Gentiles— 2 if indeed you have heard of the dispensation of the grace of God which was given to me for you, 3 how that by revelation He made known to me the mystery (as I have briefly written already, 4 by which, when you read, you may understand my knowledge in the mystery of Christ), 5 which in other ag...

Is Anybody Home? – The Holy Spirit As we continue our study of the Epistle to the Ephesians, let’s zero in and pay attention to the person and work of the Holy Spirit. The Godhead is always present and work in union with each other - The Father, The Son and The Holy Spirit. It seems we often forget the work of the Holy Spirit and even who He is. Francis Chan wrote a book: Forgotten God: Reversing Our Tragic Neglect of the Holy Spirit. Here is a summary capsule of the book from Amazon.com: "Francis Chan offers a compelling invitation to understand, embrace, and follow the Holy Spirit’s direction in our lives. In the name of the Father, the Son, and … the Holy Spirit. We pray in the name of all three, but how often do we live with an awareness of only the first two? As Jesus ascended into heaven, He promised to send the Holy Spirit—the Helper—so that we could be true and living witnesses for Christ. Unfortunately, today’s church has admired the gift but neglected to open it....

Are You a Member of God’s Household? As we continue in our study of the Epistle to Ephesians, Paul by the Holy Spirit has established how individuals are saved by grace of God. Now in our present study, Paul shifts to the establishment of the Church, the body of Christ. The “modern family” is what we have today? There is a TV show with that title that depicts the evolving nature of what constitutes a “family”. The modern family is a mixture of all kinds of set ups (married at least once, with step children and step fathers and step moms, etc.). It is unlike the traditional family with one dad and mother and the children. How do these compare to the household of God – God’s Family? What is God’s family like and what constitutes God’s Household? Let’s listen to Apostle Paul in Ephesians 2: 14 For He Himself is our peace, who has made both one, and has broken down the middle wall of separation, 15 having abolished in His flesh the enmity, that is, the law of commandments contained...

Racial/Tribal Walls Broken in Christ Those who are old enough will remember the words of President Reagan. "Tear down this wall!" was the challenge issued by United States President Ronald Reagan to Soviet Union leader Mikhail Gorbachev to destroy the Berlin Wall, in a speech at the Brandenburg Gate near the Berlin Wall on June 12, 1987”. That wall was between East and West Germany built by a faulty thinking/ideology of socialism and communism. Many others in the past have worked hard and given their lives for racial harmony and equality. Dr. Martin Luther King Jr. and scores of others to name a few. We are all aware of the recent NBA news of Donald Sterling making racial remarks that demeans black people. Everyone is crying foul but he speaks for the “un-graced” heart of all of us. There is enmity among the races and tribes that did not start with Sterling. It was ingrained by the real instigator Satan himself. It goes way back to the Garden when Satan divided Adam and E...

Exceeding Abundant Grace of God Please pardon me. I cannot get away from this subject – Grace. My mother’s name is Grace and my daughter’s name is Grace too. I seem not to get enough of grace nor comprehend fully this Grace of God. As we continue our study of Ephesians we read: 7 That in the ages to come He (God) might show the exceeding riches of His grace in His kindness toward us in Christ Jesus. 8 For by grace you have been saved through faith, and that not of yourselves; it is the gift of God, 9 not of works, lest anyone should boast Exceeding riches of His grace in kindness in Christ Jesus! This is mind blowing for me. Exceeding, surpassing, bountiful grace for a 100% sinner like me is more than I can handle. How about you? The first use of the word ‘grace’ in the Bible was with regards to Noah. Everyone else living was destroyed except for Noah and his family. Please read, “ 5 Then the LORD[b] saw that the wickedness of man was great in the earth, and that every inte...

What in the World are You doing? A story is told of a man who refused to read the book of Job in the Bible because he thought it will only convict him to work because of the title “job”. The days of long term career and employment are over. The average stay on a job is now 4.6 years according to the 2012 data from the U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics. In fact we don't have enough skills for jobs of the future (5, 10 years and beyond). It is changing rapidly. Imagine the level of current and future dissatisfaction and restlessness for all who define themselves by their career and paycheck? You are “in Christ” and not “in a job/career”. We are not saved by good works. We are saved for good works. We are saved by grace thru faith. Apostle Paul makes this very clear in Ephesians 2:8-10: 8 For by grace you have been saved through faith, and that not of yourselves; it is the gift of God, 9 not of works, lest anyone should boast. 10 For we are His workmanship, created in Christ Jesus...

Underserved Grace from Iran Let me give you good news report from Iran as reported by Sky News, April 17, 2014. Most times all we are fed by the media are the negative news from Middle East and especially the predominantly Muslim countries. Shocking: Christ loved them and died for the Middle East just as He did for us. Imagine you had the ultimate chance for revenge, to inflict the worst pain you've ever felt in equal measure on the person who caused it. In Iran, this is part of the legal system: Qisas, the sharia law of retribution, can be applied literally in some cases. One family had the opportunity. Instead, they did something extraordinary. Seven years ago, 18-year-old Abdollah Hosseinzadeh was fatally stabbed during a street brawl in Royan, a small town in the northern province of Mazandaran. His attacker, another young man known only as Balal, was sentenced to hanging by public execution. Hosseinzadeh's parents were allowed to participate by knocking out the chair...