Bible Studies
The English language sometimes sounds lazy.
We can love our wife, our dog and sundaes all while using the same word: Love. Perhaps when you were young, if a friend said something like “I love fill-in-the-blank” you might retort with “Well, why don’t you marry it.” Yeah, I know.
We use the word love to cover a multitude of things none of which really have much relationship to the other. However, the Bible makes mentions of several types of love. The most common, perhaps, phileo love or brotherly love. Hence, the city of Philadelphia is also known as the City of Brotherly Love.
Agape Love, however, comes from God and according to gotquestons.org involves faithfulness, commitment, and an act of the will. A very popular verse often read at weddings comes from 1 Corinthians 13. The ole “love is patient, love is kind” routine. Agape love visible by what it does.
When I first started drinking coffee I bought the store brands. Folgers, Maxwell House, Yuban. That was quite a while ago. I’m not even sure if those brands exist. Occasionally, I’d venture north or south on the shelf and try an independent roast but mostly stuck with those brands popular since the 50s. Then I was given a fresh bag of coffee from Costa Rica.
Oh. So that’s what coffee tastes like. I had no idea. I made the switch immediately and never went back to store bought brands. Thankfully, it wasn't much longer when the coffee revolution engulfed the United States. For some additional context, I gave my mom some of the Costa Rican coffee and her lifelong drink of store-bought coffee also came to an abrupt and final end.
There’s a better way?
Speaking of coffee, do you know about the four cups of Passover? Warm water is added to the wine in the third cup. From my understanding, the Jews don’t know why they add the water, it’s just been tradition. Interesting that water and wine in the Bible often refers to the blood and water that spilled from Jesus’ side when he was speared on the cross.
I found this tidbit of information fascinating. I learned it in church. A church that teaches verse by verse, chapter by chapter, book by book through the Bible. Like the store bought coffee, I discovered a whole new way to church.
For years I attended a topical teaching church. For years I was a flat-lined Christian. I almost titled this article the “Flat-Lined Christian.” But went with “Does Your Pastor Love You” which I’ll get to in a minute. I did not grow at my old church. Instead, the “sugar high gospel” as I call it, as opposed to the prosperity gospel, fed me. Sure, the sugar high was pretty good, at first. I can remember many, many times sitting down prior to service and simply struggling with the weight of life. “Another week Lord, but here we are. Back at church.” Not a whole lot changed from week to week. Afterwards, I’d leave with some peace but mostly a sugar high which lasted throughout the afternoon and maybe if lucky, the next day.
There’s a better way.
Eventually, God harpazo-ed me to a new church. A verse by verse, chapter by chapter, book by book, Bible teaching church. In one year, a grew more in my faith and my knowledge of the Bible and Christ than in 10 years at my previous church. In fact, sometimes I grow more in one month than in 10 years at my previous church. The four cups of Passover? I bet 1,000 years would pass and I’d still be learning about how to make friends. That was the last topical series I remember at my old church before finally pulling the plug. The reason why I remember? The sermon one week from a pastor contradicted the sermon the previous week by another pastor. Filled to the rim with Brim.
Like fresh coffee from Costa Rica, I did not know there was a better way. I heard only two percent of churches in the country teach verse by verse, chapter by chapter, book by book through the Bible. In my now several years at my new church I can’t fathom what the United States might look like, act like, live like if 98% of the churches fed their flock with verse by verse, chapter by chapter, book by book teachings through the Bible.
I know so much more.
Attending church has now become an addiction. I have to be there. In fact, I’ve already gone through my pastor’s entire verse by verse, chapter by chapter, book by book Bible teaching series online in order to catch up to where the church was when I started. Took me about 16 months. Today, I am nearly halfway through again as I generally watch and read through a past Bible teaching from my church every morning and then at least one more in the evening. I strive for two teachings a day, three makes for a great day. My record? Seven. Thanks to every other Friday’s off in the summer. Smile face emoji.
Let me tell you something. If this can happen to me, it can happen to anybody. Had you told me 10 years ago one day I’d be rabid in my response to reading along with a pastor who taught verse by verse, chapter by chapter book by book through the Bible I’d have either said, “Yeah, right” or hopefully “Why can’t we start now?” How many times did I start reading through the Bible on my own, only to fail on my own?
I struggled with grief and even anger the first year or so after attending my real church. What took so long? Hello, Lord? WHAT TOOK SO LONG? Seriously, I cannot get enough of the teachings. I keep waiting for the passion to die down but now working through the Bible a second time, and yes, seeing my pastor’s face EVERYDAY, I want more and more and more. The second time proves just as beneficial because I come across passages that I know I read but come completely new. I absorb better and things begin to retain and settle in.
It’s “a get to not a got to” says my pastor of various things in Christendom, one of those attending church. I say, “I have to!” In a good way. Not the bad form of those words like a child saying, “Oh man, I have to” as he kicks the ground with his feet Better yet, I want to.
How did this come to be?
When I struggled with the sadness and sometimes anger of why it took so long to find my church I initially decided it was either because I was not ready or because I was not listening.
Perhaps I wasn’t ready because of the firehose of information. Or maybe I wasn’t “Christian” enough. I did not like Calvary Chapel in my earlier years, and as it turns out for good reason at the one Calvary Chapel I was mostly exposed to. My church, while not Calvary Chapel, comes from that movement’s roots. Maybe they would not like the music I often listened to. Oops, keep reading.
However, I was ready long ago for all things end times, the rapture and apologetics, topics hardly taboo and widely taught and embraced at my new church. Hmm, OK, so maybe I wasn’t listening.
Quite possibly true. You can read more about that failure on my part in The Number of the Beast but, in short, the Lord, I believe, indicated to me that my church would eventually be my church about 15 years prior to stepping foot inside when I said “I’m home” as I looked around a mere 30 seconds after first entering. I didn’t even know what the pastor looked like at that point. Somehow, I knew.
However, I have finally decided on a third option as to why it took me so long. You might argue this reasoning stems from me looking to alleviate my extreme case of SIMO – Sad I Missed Out – (did I just make up a new acronym? #SIMO), however, this makes the most sense to me, only if, what I lay out here reaches just one person.
All this time, I was starving. Starving for God Word. Starving, wondering the face of the earth as a flat-lined Christian. But get this – I had no idea. Just as I had no idea that there was better coffee, the way coffee should taste, I had no idea there was a better church. The way church should taste. Maybe I needed this supernatural starvation to get here and maybe write this today.
So, what des all this have to do with whether your pastor loves you or not? If you made it this far, congratulations. Perhaps you are the one I am trying to reach. One of the best rock guitarists of all time once said, and I paraphrase, the greatest act of love you can show another is to cook for them. In other words, prepare a meal and feed them. (Sadly, he touched on agape love and doesn’t even know it.)
The Bible compares God’s Word to milk, meat, bread and honey. Jeremiah said he ate God’s Word (Jeremaih 15:16). God's Word equals spiritual food.
Every Wednesday and every weekend my pastor prepares for me and the rest of us who attend his delicious meals, the Word of God. He feeds us and nourishes us with the most important food we could ever need. God’s Word. I am not sure even he recognizes this, but by doing so, he loves us. He agapes us.
So, does you pastor agape you?
I leave you with this. I’ve written about the Fullness of the Christian before but I believe God continually lays this on my heart and I have no other platform.
In Romans 11, Paul makes reference to the “fullness of the gentiles.” If your pastor teaches verse by verse, chapter by chapter, book by book through the Bible then you likely have an understanding of what the “fullness of the gentiles” pertains to. In fact, perhaps your pastor at one time or another asked the rapture-ready congregation how many are glad the rapture didn’t happen five years ago or 10 years ago, because, how many in the room presently would not have been taken?
Now listen. I also think, perhaps, the fullness of the gentiles pertains to the flat-lined Christian. As much as I would have embraced the rapture five, 10, or 15 years ago I’m glad I got to attend my verse by verse, chapter by chapter, book by book church first. I can’t really tell you why but I’m better off. My wife made a similar comment to me just a short while ago. It took me by surprise, because, perhaps, my feelings were correct and that the fullness of the gentiles may indeed also have something to do with you and you and you, the Christian God wants to learn and know more about Him before he takes us all home.
What I am about to say may offend. From my personal experience, if you attend a topical teaching church that does not go through the Bible verse by verse, chapter by chapter, book by book, you waste your time.
Might I encourage you to start attending such a Bible teaching church and if you either have doubts or simply cannot give up your current house of worship, please consider supplementing your Christian walk by attending online a verse by verse, chapter by chapter book by book church.
There’s a better way!
If you want some suggestions on churches please consider Cornerstone Chapel with Gary Hamrick, Athey Creek Christian Fellowship with Brett Meador, Calvary Church Alburquerque with Skip Heitzig or retired Pastor Jon Courson. Each of these pastors season their “meals” differently thus you may prefer one over another. But whoever you choose, experience the love that comes from someone preparing you a meal of God’s Word.
And when you’re full maybe we can all go home.
PLEASE ENCOURAGE AUTHOR BELOW LEAVE COMMENT ON ARTICLE
This article has been read 14 times < Previous | Next >
Free Reprints
Main Site Articles
Most Read Articles
Highly Acclaimed Challenge Articles.
New Release Christian Books for Free for a Simple Review.
NEW - Surprise Me With an Article - Click here for a random URL
God is Not Against You - He Came on an All Out Rescue Mission to Save You
...in Christ God was reconciling the world to himself, not counting their trespasses against them... 2 Cor 5:19
Therefore, my friends, I want you to know that through Jesus the forgiveness of sins is proclaimed to you. Acts 13:38
LEARN & TRUST JESUS HERE
FaithWriters offers Christian reading material for Christian readers. We offer Christian articles, Christian fiction, Christian non-fiction, Christian Bible studies, Christian poems, Christian articles for sale, free use Christian articles, Christian living articles, New Covenant Christian Bible Studies, Christian magazine articles and new Christian articles. We write for Jesus about God, the Bible, salvation, prayer and the word of God.