Bunker Hill Community Church

Many Christians have appealed to 1 Corinthians 8 to justify almost any behavior they believe falls within their Christian liberty—often pointing to their understanding of freedom in Christ, the dangers of legalism, and our release from the rituals of the Law. While those truths are indeed important, Paul insists they are never more important than love. The Corinthian believers elevated their spiritual knowledge above the call to love one another, and Paul confronts them directly, showing that knowledge without love does not produce maturity but pride. Christian liberty was never meant to be exercised in isolation from the command to love. Our first priority is to love our brothers and sisters, and that love must become both the motivation and the limitation in how we use our freedom. Liberty governed by knowledge alone inflates self; liberty governed by love builds up the church.

Hebrews 11 tells us about a number of Old Testament saints who had extraordinary faith and accomplished great things in following God. But one name stands out among them--Enoch. There is very little in the Bible about Enoch, other than what we read in Hebrews 11 and in Genesis 5 where he is listed among those who lived before the flood. But even then, there is very little recorded about what he did other than this one statement: "He walked with God." That is why he is remembered among the heroes of faith in Hebrews 11. Enoch's life teaches us that God does not measure faithfulness by the extraordinary acts of faith that we accomplish for Him; He is pleased with those who walk with Him in the ordinary, everyday moments of life on a consistent basis.

Isaiah 9:1-7 prophesies the coming King who brings hope to the people of Israel suffering at the hands of their oppressors in the Old Testament, but also to all who believe today. This promised king can only be Jesus Christ, who fulfills every detail of this prophecy. He is the Wonderful Counselor, the Mighty God, the Everlasting Father, and the Prince of Peace, who will bring true shalom to the world when he sits on HIs throne in Jerusalem during the Millennial Kingdom. His kingdom is an eternal kingdom, which cannot fail, as all earthly kingdoms do and will. Unless we recognize this King and bow to Him now, we will not be part of His kingdom in the future.

Isaiah 9 is God's promise to Israel to send a king who would deliver them from oppression and bring them joy. This news was especially needed at the time it was given, a time of oppression and war, a time of spiritual darkness and despair. Into that darkness God shone His Light, the promise of a delivering king, giving His people hope. That King was Jesus, who was born in Bethlehem and spent much of his ministry in Galilee, the very place that suffered the greatest oppression in Isaiah's day. Yet, most of Israel did not recognize Him as the fulfillment of God's promise, since he did not bring immediate political deliverance from Rome. In Isaiah's announcement that a "child is born", he demonstrated that this king would be human, but in saying that a "Son is given", he emphasized the divine nature of this king.

Many modern Christians think that the Old Testament is not relevant to the Church Age. If the church exists for the purpose of exalting Jesus Christ as its head and Savior, then that view of the Old Testament is irrelevant. IN Luke 24:44, Jesus said that all of the Old Testament, including the Law, the Prophets, and the Psalms, were written ABOUT HIM. Not only is the Old Testament relevant to modern Christianity, it is also crucial in helping us to get a clear picture of who Jesus Christ is, both historically and theologically. Beginning in Genesis 3, when God promises to send a Redeemer who will crush the serpent's head, all the way through the Minor Prophets, ending with Malachi, God continues to reveal more information about the Messiah, until it becomes painfully clear that no other man could fulfill that promise other than Jesus Christ.

In Luke 17, we read about Jesus'healing of ten lepers. While all ten received the gift of healing, only one returned to give Jesus thanks and worship. This narrative demonstrates the great contrast between true thankfulness and the lack thereof. There are three aspects about true thankfulness that we can learn from this account: 1) True Thankfulness recognizes the source of the mercy received; 2) True thankfulness responds with worship and humility; and 3) True thankfulness reflects true saving faith. Gratitude is not an option--it is God's will for all believers through all circumstances. A spirit of ingratitude betrays a heart of pride. Therefore, Christians, of all people, should live in gratitude for God, spreading that gratitude to others as a testimony of the greatness of God's mercy bestowed upon us.

The Christian life is not a life of ease and comfort. We are called by God to "fight the good fight" as a good soldier of Jesus Christ. In order to effectively fulfill our mission, we must meet four qualifications of a good soldier; 1) We must recognize the spiritual warfare we are in; 2) We must be ready to endure suffering, since that is part of the battle; 3) We must not be entangled with the things of this world that would distract us from our mission; and 4) We must demonstrate absolute loyalty to our Heavenly Commander through obedience.

Through 1 Corinthians 7, the Apostle Paul addresses marriage, divorce, celibacy, and singleness in the context of the Christian life. His overall message throughout the chapter is that, regardless of your marital state, you should remain as you are for the purpose of serving the Lord. God has chosen for us our present circumstances for a very specific purpose, and we must not seek to change our status or position, looking for greater opportunity. Singleness is no exception to that rule. In the last half of Chapter 7, Paul lays out five reasons why staying single as a believer may be an advantage over being married.