Keep sharing good news without ads.
No description available
Our God is a great God. He is a good God and because He is good we know that He would not allow evil to occur if it was not to serve some great and ultimate good purpose. That is why God allows agents of evil to exist for a time so that He may reveal in the fullness of time the full range of His glory.
When we understand the text. You're listening to when we understand the text committed to.
The sound teaching of the Word of God. For questions and comments email whenweunderstandthetext at gmail .com and don't forget our website www .utt .com.
Here's our host Pastor Gabe. Thank you Becky. We have been committing ourselves to a study of the book of Colossians so that we might know Christ as preeminent. He is top. He is everything. There is nothing else to gain but Christ and so as we commit ourselves to the study of God's Word anytime we come to God's Word for study we are making ourselves better worshipers of God because according to the wisdom that is given to us by the Spirit we are able to worship God better and better in a way that is worthy and pleasing to Him.
In John chapter 4 when Jesus was talking to the Samaritan woman at the well He said to her that the worshipers that God the Father is seeking will worship Him in spirit and in truth and we grow in both of those things as we apply ourselves to the Word of God which was given to us by the Spirit of God.
The truth according to the Spirit. So as we come to the text today let us go to the Lord in prayer. Our wonderful and great God we thank you so much for yet another opportunity to come to your Word and read it and by the power of your Spirit may we be able to understand it.
I pray that these things are being applied to your glory and your greatness that as we grow in the knowledge of these things we are being made into better worshipers that we might give you the praise that you truly deserve.
Maybe we don't even know what that means sometimes. How can I properly open myself and give the praise to God that He deserves? We thank you for your patience with us as we learn those things and it is by your Spirit that we come to a deeper understanding.
In the name of Christ Jesus we pray. Amen. So we come to Colossians chapter 1 verse 15 through 20 which we've been studying this week knowing that Jesus is the image of the invisible God. He is the firstborn of all creation for by Him all things were created in heaven and on earth visible and invisible whether thrones or dominions or rulers or authorities all things were created through Him and for Him and He is before all things and in Him all things hold together and He is the head of the body the church.
He is the beginning the firstborn from the dead that in everything He might be preeminent for in Him all the fullness of God was pleased to dwell and through Him to reconcile to Himself all things whether on earth or in heaven making peace by the blood of His cross.
As this has been the first opportunity that the Apostle Paul has had to preach to the Colossians he means to set out from the very beginning the good news of the gospel of Jesus Christ. He means to set up for the Colossians an understanding of who Jesus is and the first way that Paul describes Christ is being the image of the invisible God.
As we talked about yesterday He's the personification of wisdom. Everything that we can know about God we know through Jesus Christ. Jesus is the firstborn of all creation and as I mentioned about this yesterday it does not mean that Jesus was created.
It doesn't mean that He has a beginning that God created Him because we know by what Scripture says about Him that He has no beginning. Described in Revelation as the Alpha and Omega the beginning and the end.
It basically means He has no beginning and He has no end. Jesus has been around with God the Father as long as God the Father has existed with no beginning and no end. God the Father, God the Son, God the Holy Spirit have always been together with God the Godhead.
We worship one God. He is three persons Father, Son, and Holy Spirit. But when the Apostle Paul says He's the firstborn of all creation I just mentioned to you yesterday that means that Jesus wasn't created but I didn't really give you the explanation of the context.
For Jesus to be described as the firstborn of all creation means that God the Father has given Him all the rights of the firstborn. So as we understand this in a biblical history context the firstborn is given everything from the Father.
So when the Father passes away He would give something to the firstborn. Everything that is His that is in His possession is given to the firstborn and then the firstborn can decide to keep it all or He allocates it among the other members of His family.
That may also be the wishes of the Father that He would be the advocate or the person that would allocate everything else to the members of the family. So basically God the Father has given everything to Christ and we see that as we go on at the end of verse 16 all things were created through Him and for Him.
So everything has been given to Him. That means that He's been given the rights of the firstborn. So that's what that means when Paul says He is the firstborn of all creation. It doesn't mean that Jesus was created first and then He created everything else.
It means that He's been given the rights of the firstborn and all things belong to Him. That's why He's the firstborn of all creation. For by Him all things were created. So again as I mentioned yesterday because He's the one that created all things He therefore can't be created because if that would be the case He didn't create everything because there's something that wasn't that He didn't create and that would be Himself.
So we know that because Paul goes on to say that He created all things therefore the statement that He is the firstborn of all creation cannot mean that Jesus was created since He's the creator of all things.
By Him all things were created. So the Son portion of the Trinity, Father, Son and Spirit, it is the Son in particular who created everything. Jesus created all things. When Jesus took on the form of a man when He took on flesh and He walked this earth and He fulfilled all the law and the prophets He gave us the ultimate example of what it means to love the Lord your God with all your heart soul mind and strength and love your neighbor as yourself as it says in Philippians 2 11 that He did all things to the glory of God the Father through Christ Jesus our Lord as Jesus was fully man and fully God as He did these things and died on the cross for our sins and came back again from the grave and He gave us the Great Commission to go and baptize in the name of the Father and the Son and the Holy Spirit teaching them to observe all that I have commanded.
Jesus did this for the very people He Himself created. He allowed Himself to be crucified and died so that we might have life and that happened at the hands of lawless men. So God came to His very own creation, the creation that Jesus made.
He put on flesh and dwelt among. By Him all things were created in heaven and on earth. So Jesus is also the one who created all of the angels and all of the demons. Now at the time that Jesus created them they were not angels and demons.
He created them and they were good. Now a question that often comes up is when did Jesus create the angels? Okay so when we're looking at the creation story in Genesis 1 and 2 we do not see God creating angels.
So God created angels in heaven and then He created man. There's no order that's given to us that way. So at what point in creation did God create the angels? I think it would have to be in Genesis 1 1.
In the beginning God created the heavens and the earth and when we're talking about heavens we're not talking about the body of stars in the sky because God had not created the stars yet. So He created the heavens and the earth.
There was a spiritual and a physical world. That's basically what's what's being described there in Genesis 1 1. In the beginning God created the physical world and the spiritual world. So in at that moment that was when God created the angels because God is spiritual and He's always existed but when we have God creating the heavens and the earth He created a spiritual realm in which the angels existed.
So that's that's at least you know I know that's probably conjecture on my part but that's where I would see that occurring there in Genesis 1 1. So then here's here's another question that usually follows that or sometimes we'll follow that one.
At what point did Satan fall? When did Satan fall and when were the angels cast out of heaven in the creation story? Well I believe that Satan fell at the time that man fell. It was all at one time. Let's go to it and look at it together here.
Hang on I got to put my bookmark in Colossians 1 so I can get back to it faster. All right Genesis chapter 3. Real easy to find. Third chapter of the whole Bible. This is the story of the fall of man.
So you have Adam and Eve who are enjoying the the trees in the garden. They can eat of every tree except for the tree of the knowledge of good and evil. God told them not to eat that tree. Another question that often comes up with the creation story is why did God even put that tree there?
Why did he even hang the fruit in a place that Adam and Eve could pluck from it and in and and take from it and thus result in being cast from the garden and sin and death that would enter all of mankind in all of Adam's seed to come.
Why would God even allow for that to happen? Now here's the thing. Yes God could have not put that tree there and then maybe there wouldn't have even been a way for Adam and Eve to fall but I believe that the reason why the tree is there and I don't think this is conjecture on my part.
I think that we can know this according to what Scripture says. The reason why God put that tree there and why he said to Adam and Eve don't eat it is because there is joy in obeying the Lord. There is joy when we obey God and so it was one command.
It was one thing that God told Adam and Eve not to do and as long as they don't do that then they would receive all of the other blessings of God. So not only did God give them the pleasure of having the best of all of creation and having it without death and having it without any curses he also gave them a law to follow so that they would know in fullness the joy of the Lord because they knew what it meant to obey God.
They enjoyed God in all of his perfection even the perfection of his commands and his law. One command but they were able to rejoice in God in obeying that command. In Psalm 119 we have David saying oh Lord how I love your law I meditate on it all the day.
So you would have to see Adam and Eve in the Garden of Eden they themselves loving the law of God because they obeyed his command and then we know that they didn't. The serpent comes into the garden the serpent which is Satan that possessed this snake or something I don't know exactly how that all all that works out in the picture but the serpent tempts Eve to eat the fruits that God told them not to eat from and she when she saw that it was desirable for the eyes she took it and she ate it and she gave some to her husband who was with her and he ate okay it's the ultimate sin of omission that Adam just kind of stood there and he let the serpent tempt his wife he who is the head of his wife who should have been leading his wife he doesn't do anything to stop it.
She eats the fruit she hands it to him he goes great eats it he sees that his wife isn't dead. I don't know was he using her as the test subject. I don't know what was happening there. I'll see if she eats it and if she dies no it looks like she survived.
Okay I'm gonna eat it too. I don't know what was going through his mind through that whole thing but yeah he's the ultimate passive dude right there not even doing anything about it and just letting it happen.
And so then the eyes their eyes were opened as it says in Genesis 3 7 they knew that they were naked and they sewed fig leaves together and made for themselves loin claws. And then they hid from God. Boy that's that.
You know what in the world Adam and Eve you think you can hide from God. And then they're terrible at the game of hide-and-seek. Because when God calls out to them they say I'm here. Yeah you're terrible at that game.
Why were you hiding. And Adam said well we heard you coming and we hid because we were naked. And God said who told you that you were naked. Have you eaten of the tree which I commanded you not to eat.
And the man said the woman whom you gave to be with me she gave me the fruit of the tree and I ate it. Adams blaming God there. Yeah he's throwing the woman under the bus. But he's blaming God the woman that you gave to me she gave me the fruit of the tree and I ate it.
Then the Lord said to the woman what is this that you have done. The woman said the serpent deceived me and I ate. And the Lord God said to the serpent because you have done this cursed are you above all the livestock and above all beasts of the field on your belly you shall go and dust you shall eat all the days of your life.
I will put enmity between you and the woman in between your offspring and her offspring. He shall bruise your head and you shall bruise his heel. And of course that's the first prophecy of the coming of Christ.
Genesis 3 15. The enmity that would be between you and the woman is Christ all right. So now now here's the question. Here's the thing that I have to ask you why is this curse significant. I mean what difference does it make that God curses a snake all right is the reason why we see snakes crawling in the grass on their belly because God cursed the snake you because you've done this cursed are you above all livestock and above all beasts of the field.
So the snake is more cursed than than anything else in the field. God is not merely talking to an animal. God is talking to Satan. This is the fall of Satan. Satan fell at the time that man fell. It is the same thing.
It was the same fall. And we read in the book of Revelation that Satan was cast out of heaven and a third of the angels went with him. But this is the fall of Satan right here because you Satan have done this curse to you above all livestock.
Satan is even cursed above everything else in all of creation and above all the beasts of the field. On your belly you shall go and dust you shall eat all the days of your life. So when we see the snake crawling in the in the in the dust we're reminded of the curse that occurred to Satan.
But the curse is not merely to a snake. We know that Satan was in the Garden of Eden. And at the time that he was in the Garden of Eden he was good. He was an angel of light. The way that Ezekiel talks to the king of Tyree and compares him to the fall of Satan.
In Ezekiel chapter 28 it says. You were the signet of perfection full of wisdom and perfect in beauty. You were in Eden the Garden of God. Every precious stone was your covering. Sardius topaz and diamond barrel onyx and jasper sapphire emerald and carbuncle and crafted in gold were your settings and your engravings.
On the day that you were created they were prepared. You were an anointed guardian cherub an angel I placed you. You were on the holy mountain of God in the midst of the stones of fire. You walk. So you're talking about a very very high ranking angel.
You were an anointed guardian cherub. You were blameless in your ways. There was a time when Satan was blameless from the day you were created till unrighteousness was found in you in the abundance of your trade.
You were filled with violence in your midst and you sinned. So I cast you as a profane thing from the mountain of God and I destroyed you. Oh guardian cherub from the midst of the stones of the fire. Your heart was proud because of your beauty.
You corrupted your wisdom for the sake of your splendor. I cast you to the ground. I exposed you before Kings to feast their eyes on you by the multitude of your iniquities. In the unrighteousness of your trade you profaned your sanctuary.
So I brought fire out from your midst. It consumed you and I turned you to ashes on the earth in the sight of all who saw you. All who know you among the peoples are appalled at you. You have come to a dreadful end and shall be no more forever.
Sounds a lot like the curse that is being given to the snake here in Genesis chapter 3 isn't it. This is the fall of the devil where mankind fell. The devil fell as well and he was cast out from heaven.
There was a time when he was in Eden and he was declared as good as we read in Ezekiel chapter 28. But when he tempted the woman when he saw as his wisdom was greater than the wisdom of God and he betrayed God he was cast from heaven and cursed.
Is he above all else. So as as Jesus. And now I'm jumping back to Colossians chapter 1 here as Jesus is the creator of all things in heaven and on earth visible and invisible whether thrones or dominions or rulers or authorities.
We're talking about the rankings of angels and demons. Why did God create Satan. Why did he even create him. There was a time when Satan was good. But if God knows all things and indeed he does and he knew that Satan was going to fall.
Why did he even create Satan. And I tell you this without going into a too long of a lengthy explanation because I'm coming to the end of my teaching here. Satan cannot do anything that God would not allow him to do.
It is so that Satan would become an agent that God uses to show the full range of his glory including destroying the works of the devil which it says that Christ came to do in 1st John 3 8. God would not allow evil to happen if it was not to serve some ultimate purpose.
God himself is not evil. He does not cause evil acts. But there are agents that do evil things. And God allows those things to happen so that the full range of his glory might be displayed. A day will come when the devil will be defeated once and for all and all who are in Christ will rejoice and celebrate in a place in a time in a kingdom that is peaceful where there is no more crying no more tears no more pain.
We will rejoice in heaven with God knowing that the last enemy death itself has been defeated because God is great. And so we worship God in all of his glory. We become better worshippers of God when we understand these things.
And when we worship God for all of his attributes not only because he is a God of love which he is but also because he is a God of wrath. And these two things do not oppose one another. God is love. And it is in love that he has shown to us his great love when he sent his son Jesus to die on the cross for our sins for our betrayal.
We are willing participants with Adam. It wasn't that Adam sinned. And now we've just come along and you know. Thanks Adam. Thanks a bunch. We would not be sinners if it wasn't for you. No we are willing participants in Adams sin and God loved us enough that he didn't leave us dead.
In that state he has made us alive together with Christ. So repent of your sin and follow Jesus. Lord. We thank you for this text today. We thank you for the things that you have shown us. Maybe we've been left with more questions that we had answers at the start of this study.
But I pray that you continue to grow us in these things. You you keep us seeking in and growing in wisdom and knowledge. As we go we pray and ask for the guidance of your spirit in the name of Jesus. Amen.
Is it true that the four Gospels Matthew Mark Luke and John contradict one another in the details about the death and resurrection of Jesus Christ. Ye nope. The Gospels were in full agreement that Jesus's last supper with his disciples was on Thursday night that they went to the Mount of Olives to pray that Jesus was betrayed by Judas Iscariot for money and arrested that he appeared before the high priest and that Jesus claimed to be God.
Yes in all four Gospels Jesus was denied by Peter three times. Friday morning he appeared before Pontius Pilate he was beaten. The prisoner Barabbas was set free. In exchange Jesus was crucified in a place called the skull.
He hung on his cross between two other criminals and he died and was buried in the tomb of Joseph of Arimathea. On Sunday at dawn Jesus rose from the dead. The empty tomb was first found by the women one of whom was Mary Magdalene.
And then they went and told the disciples. But wait the doubter says Mark is supposed to end with verse 8 where it says that the women were terrified by what they had seen and told no one. Well obviously they told someone genius or Mark wouldn't have written about it.
The angel told the women to go and tell the disciples. And it is understood. That's exactly what they did. It's true that the Gospels differ on other specifics but these details do not contradict one another and in no way negate the gospel truth.
That Jesus Christ died on a cross was buried in a tomb and came back from the dead is historical fact. You can be more certain of that truth than you can be. That you'll see the sunrise tomorrow. Jesus said I am the resurrection and the life.
Whoever believes in me though he died yet shall he live. That's a truth you can know and place your hope in when we understand the text. Our question today comes from Josh in Texas. He says dear what.
I came across your ministry after seeing you on wretched with Todd Freel. Yeah we appreciate wretched and and everything that Todd Freel is done for the ministry. Thank you for your videos. They are short concise.
And pithy. A great resource. Good word there pithy. Could you do some more videos on contradictions in Scripture. I guess if I was going to make a more specific suggestion it would be the classic example in Proverbs 26 4 5.
Answer not a fool according to his folly lest you be like him yourself. Answer a fool according to his folly lest he be wise in his own eyes. That's a common one I get from others when they try to say that the Bible is unreliable because it contradicts itself.
Thanks again Josh. Thank you for your question. Let's go to that proverb. I'm gonna go ahead and read them again and then respond. You've asked a good question there. And in fact you're right. We do need to do a what video on that one.
And and Josh if you can think of anything else in terms of contradictions in Scripture. Or maybe you the listener if you can think of a of an argument that you know that a person is made about contradictions in Scripture.
What is the answer to that when they bring up that argument send it to us an email when we understand the text at gmail .com. I'd love to hear your suggestions. Okay so let's go to the verse. Proverbs chapter 26 verses 4 5.
Here's verse 4. Answer not a fool according to his folly lest you be like him yourself. Now here's verse 5. Answer a fool according to his folly lest he be wise in his own eyes. Yeah those are the classic pair of verses that somebody will tend to use and go see the Bible contradicts itself.
And I want to say you know I really have to keep myself from laughing at them when they do that because I want to go really you think it's that easy that you can just go to that verse. And then the one right after it that the Bible writers were so ignorant that they could not even see that they were contradicting themselves.
Man everybody that's been following the Bible for 2 ,000 years nobody could see that obvious glaring contradiction in those two verses. Verses 4 5 anyway. But I digress. Let's let's look at those verses and let me give you a visual here as to as to what this might look like.
Okay. Answer not a fool according to his folly lest you be like him yourself. So let's say you have a clown. There's a man dressed as a clown and you want to show him how ridiculous he looks by dressing like a clown.
So then you come and stand before him in the same clown outfit that he's got on to show him that he looks ridiculous. Well now you look ridiculous because you're dressed like a clown. So you're answering the fool according to his folly and you've become like him yourself.
That's verse 4. Now here's verse 5 answer a fool according to his folly lest he be wise in his own eyes. So first we're told answer not a fool according to his folly. And now we're being told to answer a fool according to his folly.
Well how does that work. We've got a guy standing there dressed as a clown and instead of dressing like him you hold up a mirror and you show him that he looks ridiculous. You have answered him according to his folly so that he would not be wise in his own eyes.
He's able to see in the mirror that yeah you're right. I look pretty ridiculous. So does that give you a little bit better context or a little bit better understanding as to how those two verses do not contradict one another.
There are no contradictions in Scripture. None. Now there are some mysterious paradoxes that I won't deny. How is it that God can be a loving God and a wrathful God at the same time. How is it that God can hate the sinner but love him also.
And the answer to that is the cross. There are some beautiful paradoxes that occur in Scripture. Those things are there. But they are things to behold God in wonder over not to go. Oh yeah. Well this thing's not true.
We can't read it anymore because these things contradict one another. There are things that that we should stand in awe of God and wonder at and continue to labor over the scriptures until we understand them.
But the Bible does not contradict itself. Our great God thank you for your word and thank you for training us according to these things help us to be submissive to the authority of your scripture. And if there is something in it that we do not understand give us wisdom and insight until we do understand it and we.
Pray this in Jesus name Amen. This has been when we understand the text of Pastor Gabriel Hughes. For all of our podcasts episodes videos books and more visit our website at www .utt .com if you'd like to submit a question to this broadcast or just send us a comment email when we understand the text at gmail .com and let your friends know about our ministry.
Join us again tomorrow as we grow together in the study of God's Word. When we understand the text.