Posted on Wednesday, July 29, 2020 7:18 PM
Those who live according to the flesh set their minds on the things of the flesh; but those who live according to the Spirit set their minds on the things of the Spirit. The mind of the flesh is death, but the mind of the Spirit is life and peace, because the mind of the flesh is hostile to God: It does not submit to God’s Law, nor can it do so. Those controlled by the flesh cannot please God. Romans 8:5-8
What does it mean to live according to the flesh (the mind of the flesh) and what does it mean to live according to the Spirit (the mind of the Spirit)? |
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Brad Robertson: Posted on Monday, January 21, 2019 11:25 AM
In Galatians, we see Paul passionately standing up for the gospel of grace as he boldly confronted the false teachers who opposed the fullness of the gospel of grace and who taught obedience to the law was required for righteousness.
Concerning these false teachers, Paul emphatically states:
“If anyone is preaching to you a gospel contrary to the one you embraced, let him be under a curse!” (Galatians 1:9)
However in 2 Timothy, Paul gave Timothy the following instructions about responding to those who have a partial knowledge of the truth about Jesus but who oppose the full teaching of the gospel of grace (all that God has done for us in Christ to fully reconcile us to himself, forgive us for all our sins, and to freely provide righteousness for us as a gift, which we receive by faith in Jesus). |
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Brad Robertson: Posted on Monday, September 24, 2018 1:33 PM
“Finally, my brothers, rejoice in the Lord. It is no trouble for me to write the same things to you again, and it is a safeguard for you. Watch out for those dogs, those workers of evil, those mutilators of the flesh! For it is we who are the circumcision, we who worship by the Spirit of God, who glory in Christ Jesus, and who put no confidence in the flesh.” Philippians 3:1-3 So often when people comment on the meaning of a verse, or apply a verse to their lives, they do so without first determining the author’s original meaning of the verse.
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Brad Robertson: Posted on Tuesday, August 21, 2018 1:50 PM
The
Spirit of God desires to reveal to you what God has prepared for those who love
him.
About
this revelation, 1 Corinthians 2:9 says:
“No eye has seen, no ear has heard, no heart
has imagined, what God has prepared for those who love Him.”
The
revelation that God through his Spirit wants to give you is not something
conceived in the mind or heart of a person...no person could dream, invent,
develop, create, or design what God has prepared for you.
What
God has prepared is beyond the heart and mind of mankind. |
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Brad Robertson: Posted on Wednesday, June 20, 2018 2:54 PM
The Old Testament (Covenant) is understood by most to be a collection of books (Genesis - Malachi), and the New Testament is understood to be a collection of books (Matthew - Revelation).
However, this is an incorrect understanding.
The Old and New Testaments (Covenant) are not a collection of books but each testament reveals how God relates to people at different times in history.
The OT communicates how God related to Israel under the Law of Moses (Book of the Law, Book of Moses, or Written Code - Exodus 19-Leviticus, Deuteronomy) and the New Covenant is how God relates to everyone who receives his grace through faith in Jesus. |
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Brad Robertson: Posted on Monday, February 12, 2018 11:20 AM
Fully Devoted Followers of Jesus or Led by the Spirit of Jesus?
I know it sounds odd, even absurd, for me to make such a statement about believers not being called to be fully devoted followers of Jesus.
In this post, I hope to bring clarity as to why we are not called to be fully devoted followers of Jesus in the new covenant of grace (how we relate to God following the death, burial, resurrec...tion, and ascension of Jesus, in contrast to how a person related to him before each of these).
Here are my thoughts based on what I see in the Bible: |
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Brad Robertson: Posted on Monday, February 12, 2018 11:15 AM
There are many preachers within Christianity teaching people they must be “baptized in the Spirit” or “filled with the Holy Ghost” to be Spirit-filled.
They teach the “baptism in the Spirit” is evidenced by speaking in tongues.
They tell people that unless they speak in tongues, they are not Spirit-filled.
They pressure others to speak in tongues.
They surround people at church services, attempting to have them “pray in tongues”.
They coach people on how to speak in tongues. They will make you feel inferior because you do not speak in tongues. |
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Brad Robertson: Posted on Wednesday, July 5, 2017 10:45 AM
It seems absurd, even heretical, to view the Ten Commandments as something which can put someone into bondage. It seems the commandments, if obeyed by someone, can lead to freedom. But that is the problem. No one can obey the Ten Commandments. We have all sinned and broken the Ten Commandments. The penalty is death. As a matter of fact, the more someone tries to obey the Ten Commandments the more they break them (Romans 5:20, 7:7-25). Paul makes all of this clear in Romans.
In 2 Corinthians 3:6-9, we discover that the ministry of the Ten Commandments is to bring death, condemnation. |
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Brad Robertson: Posted on Sunday, June 25, 2017 3:18 PM
Following one of our services, when I was a pastor, a first-time visitor told me,“This church is not a Spirit-filled church.” I replied, “What do you mean by a Spirit-filled church?” She responded, “Well it is dead. No one raises their hands in worship. No one claps. People just stand there...lifeless. The Spirit is not present. It’s just a dead church.”
Many times we hear people saying their church is a “Spirit-filled church”. Churches even market themselves as a “Spirit-filled church.” By this they mean their church has an emotionally moving praise and worship service facilitated by the praise band where “the Spirit is free to move” and where people outwardly worship God in song. |
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Brad Robertson: Posted on Sunday, April 30, 2017 7:13 PM
To understand the Spirit-filled life, we must have a proper understanding of law and grace. In the previous chapter, we discovered we are no longer under law, but under grace. This means we no longer relate to God as judge, living in fear of his condemnation and judgment. We now relate to God as our Father, assured of his love, acceptance, and forgiveness. This is the story of the Spirit-filled life.
God Sent The Spirit of Jesus To Live In Us
Galatians 4:4-7 says, “But when the time had fully come, God sent his Son, born of a woman, born under law, to redeem those under law, that we might receive the full rights of sons. |
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