Newtestamentchronology's Podcast

The Apostle Paul planted churches all around the Galatia region and wanted (and needed) to write to them to encourage them to remain in the faith. He was inspired to write to them to confront the false teaching of a group known as the Judaizers who working to undermine the Gospel message by insisting these new converts also take on most elements of OT Judaism. This pressure to conform to legalistic, extra-Biblical religious standards is and will always be an ongoing batter, human nature rejects the profound simplicity of the Gospel which announces Jesus Christ…and Jesus Christ ALONE…is the Savior. “There Is A King” by Zach Loomis, Used With Permission, All Rights Reserved

It is great to have a church with a wide opened door at the front, all should be welcome to come! In most of our churches, most of our efforts are focused on drawing people into that front door. That might be a great thing if the fact that we also tend to have a massive back door that is not only opened but has had its doors blown off the hinges wasn’t sadly so real. What are we doing about that back door? What happens when church folk just…disappear? Do we care? Do we even notice? If so, do they know we care about them and hope they return to the congregation in hope that the message of the Gospel will go past their heads and will penetrate their hearts? “There Is A King” by Zach Loomis, Used With Permission, All Rights Reserved

Do you believe in the power of prayer? Most Christians are quick to say, “absolutely!” …but do you really? It seems like we are all so prone to turn to the world whenever we face trials and the celebrate with the world when things go well, and when we do that it should cause us to question ourselves about what we truly believe about prayer. “There Is A King” by Zach Loomis, Used With Permission, All Rights Reserved

For the Gospel to be effectively proclaimed, Christians must be taken seriously. When we speak people should believe and trust in our sincerity and have confidence that we know what we are talking about. This goes not only for the formal declaration of Gospel truths, but this should be true when we speak to people on any topic. We must be sincere and credible any time we speak and if not then our witness is shot long before we even get to the details of the Gospel. The Apostle James says that above everything else, we are to be credible. Our “yes” or “no” should be good enough for anyone that knows us to believe in. There Is A King by Zach Loomis, Used With Permission, All Rights Reserved

If you asked most evangelical pastors today about "end times Bible prophecy" you'd probably get the impression that such things are not all that important and certainly not worth spending much time looking into. Of course, that is not at all the Biblical vision of the Last Things, after all, God put all that stuff in there for a reason! Obviously, HE doesn't think it's no big deal! And the Apostle James directly ties our hope in and mediation upon the Second Coming to our ability to endure hardships, tribulation and trial. He connects our eschatology to our ability to remain patient and steadfast in our Christian walk. Clearly Biblical eschatology is more than just points to debate and cool trivia impress baby Christians with! "There Is A King" by Zach Loomis, Used With Permission, All Rights Reserved

The Bible nowhere condemns wealth, but it strongly condemns oppression of the poor by fraud. The Apostle James sounds much like an OT prophet as he rails against the abuse of wealthy, non-Christian land owners who he warned of impending doom. www.ChristIsKingMinistries.com/donate "There Is a King" by Zach Loomis, Used With Permission, All Rights Reserved

How quick are we to make plans without leaving any consideration for what the Lord would have us to do? How quick are we to accept the glory for good work being done, for profits that are being made or growth that our department or company is experiencing? The Apostle James says living life like that, living as if God is not directly involved in our lives, is a type arrogant boasting. “There Is A King” by Zach Loomis, Used With Permission, All Rights Reserved

One does not need to read the Bible long before they come to understand that God forbids people to judge one another, but have you ever wondered why it’s such a big deal? Often times we chalk up a command like that as one of those “be nice to people” type of things without realizing the serious nature of the sin itself. “There Is A King” by Zach Loomis, Used With Permission, All Rights Reserved

Whenever there are 5 Sundays in a month we like to take a break from our regular study and introduce bonus content that we pray will be encouraging to you! For this 5th Sunday Bonus we go all the way back to July 8th, 2007 when Gary Fox preached at his first church plant, Southside Christian Fellowship (just outside of Akron, OH). The Bible is clear, the supernatural realm is real. It is impossible to read God's Word and come away believing it is presenting a naturalistic world. It speaks about God, Satan, Angels, Demons along with other beings referred to as Heavenly Hosts, powers and principalities. While this teaching of the Bible is undeniable, how many of us live our day to day lives keeping these realities in mind? There is a fourth dimension with real beings at work…some good and some evil…and life will not make any sense at all until that is recognized and accounted for. “There Is A King” by Zach Loomis, Used With Permission, All Rights Reserved

Fidelity to God is not something He takes lightly whatsoever, and neither should we. The devotion which we ought to display towards God is to be nothing short of radical, hard core and all pervasive. So extreme should our fidelity be to the Lord that it would seem to the world that we have lost our minds. We cannot both love the ways of the world and love the ways of God, and there is no middle ground between those two things. This week Gary Fox expounds upon the Apostle James’ teaching the difference between spiritual adultery and spiritual fidelity. One is friendship with the world and the other is passionate abandonment of all to draw near to God. “There Is A King” by Zach Loomis, Used With Permission, All Rights Reserved

The sin of adultery is so heinous because it mars the purpose God has for marriage. God intends marriage to represent to the world the type of relationship He has with His people. Stepping outside of marriage to find fulfillment is the same thing as saying, "God didn't provide for all of my needs..." The Apostle James equates loyalty and fidelity to the world with infidelity towards God. He says those who are loyal to the world are adulterous people. We have all been guilty of seeking pleasure, prosperity and peace in places other than in God...and each time we do so we have committed spiritual adultery. There Is A King by Zach Loomis, Used With Permission, All Rights Reserved

The Apostle James gets to the heart of every conflict, the desire to please the self. Often times it takes two selfish people, church members or nations to spark conflict, but not always. When we find ourselves in conflict, as Christians, we must examine our hearts and ask the Lord to show us if we are being motivated by His Kingdom...or ours. "There Is A King" by Zach Loomis, Used With Permission, All Rights Reserved

There is a way in which the world thinks and a way in which the people of God will think, and those two ways are highly distinct. Worldly wisdom is based in selfish ambition, self promotion and self advancement. The wisdom which is "from above" is pure, gentle and all about seeking peace. This week Gary Fox exposes the evidence which demonstrates how we can be sure the modern evangelical movement is being significantly influenced by worldly wisdom and how we can distinguish between counterfeit and legitimate wisdom. "There Is A King" by Zach Loomis, Used With Permission, All Rights Reserved

The Apostle James describes the tongue as a "fire" which is in and of itself neither good or evil. A fire can help or hurt, a fire can save or kill, a fire can produce or destroy. Our tongue is no different. This week Gary Fox unpacks this highly illustrative section of Scripture and pleads with his audience to do as the Apostle James instructs and that is to be sure the content of our speech is consistent with our regenerated hearts. "There Is A King" by Zach Loomis, Used with Permission, All Rights Reserved

Few things are as powerful as the tongue. It can be a tool which builds or tears down. It can be used to heal or to hurt. I can reflect the goodness of God by speaking truth in love, or it can be used to mar the glorious nature of God by speaking lies or bitterness. This week Gary Fox explores the urgent warnings the Apostle James gives us regarding the very real danger of having an unbridled tongue, these are warnings all of us heed and take very seriously. ***There Is A King by Zach Loomis, Used With Permission, All Rights Reserved

The office and role of "teacher" in the Bible is one which is elevated to strict standards, and should never be taken lightly. When a man stands before people and declares to them what is and is not true, he had better be called, educated and gifted to do so because nothing is more vitally important for people than for them to know the truth. The Apostle James said there should be a limited number of men called upon to teach in the church and he reminds us that we are not doing anyone any favors by pushing people into a teaching ministry wrongly...the judgement they face will be at a higher standard than everyone else. This week Gary Fox explains why this issue is so important and how churches can identify who is likely called and who is likely not called to teach the Bible. ***There Is A King by Zach Loomis, Used With Permission, All Rights Reserved

Just because someone says they are a Christian does not mean they actually are one. Their life, their works and their actions will PROVE what they say about what they believe. Even a weak Christian will be taking steps, albeit tiny ones, in the direction of obedience. If Jesus is not your Lord, He is not your Savior either. This week Gary Fox unpacks the power examples the Apostle James gives to us which prove without any doubt whatsoever that faith without works is dead. There Is A King by Zach Loomis, Used With Permission, All Rights Reserved

While it is very true that Christians are saved through faith alone, saving faith is never left alone. True saving faith will always be followed by genuine, God-fearing works. The Apostle James wipes out any doubt that anyone may have regarding the nature of the Christian life, he says it will be marked by good works. And if anyone claims to have faith but has no corresponding good works that person should not expect to be welcomed into Heaven because his faith is "dead". This week Gary Fox highlights how the teachings of the Apostle Paul and the Apostle James regarding the nature and result of salvation are in perfect harmony with one another. There Is A King by Zach Loomis, Used With Permission, All Rights Reserved

We are quick to either justify or minimalise sin rather than accept the responsibility of guilt. This is exactly how so many of us try to get around the sin of partiality, favoritism, racism and classism. We either try to justify it by saying nature intended for us to stick with our kind or we will say things like, “well, I was just raised this way...it’s just how I feel…” The Apostle James lays waste to these arguments. He makes it very clear that sectarianism is sin and even if we are perfect in every other way, this sin of partiality makes us transgressors against the whole law. In his series in the Epistle James, Gary Fox explains how we must not only confess sin, we must turn away from it in repentance ***There Is A King by Zach Loomis, used with permission, all rights reserved

It's bad enough that people have to deal with constant judgement out in the world, but to come into church and having to feel looked down upon (for whatever reason) is terrible. The Apostle James deals with this big time sin and says that it is rooted in "evil thoughts". Judging people based upon superficial standards such as their net worth is so contrary to the Gospel, yet even 2000 years later we are STILL too easily prone to do it! Join us this week as Gary Fox drills down into what motivates that very worldly way of looking at people. "There Is A King" by Zach Loomis, used with permission, all rights reserved.