Calvary Bible Fellowship, Bangalore

In this passage we see the blessedness of those who enter the kingdom of God. The power of the kingdom of God is displayed in the “signs and wonders” done by the hands of the apostles among the people (verse 12). The apostles are performing miracles of healing and casting out demons and the people are amazed. You would think everyone would be rushing to join them, but they’re not. Why not? Perhaps...

We learned in last week's passage (Acts 4:1–22) that, after Peter and John's arrest, they spoke boldly to the Sanhedrin, defending their healing the lame man lovingly in Jesus Name. Moreover, Peter proclaimed that salvation was through Christ alone. He and John also blamed the religious leaders for crucifying Jesus who'd been prophesied to be the Messiah. The elders and rulers met privately (4:13–...

When we come to this portion, it was the job of the priests to teach the people, so they didn’t like it when the apostles taught them.  “The captain of the temple” was supposed to keep everyone but priests out of the temple , but the leaders in Israel used them and their weapons as “muscle” to arrest the Lord and the apostles here.  So the captain didn’t like the apostles preaching Chris...

In this passage, Peter applies his sermon (verses 11-16) to the crowd of people who are gathered and astonished at a crippled man being instantly healed. Peter has already explained that the man was healed through faith in Jesus of Nazareth. He has also declared that Jesus is the promised Christ of the prophets, and that they are culpable in his death. Very weighty statements. Now he explains what...

Here Paul summarizes his point: “These, then, are the things you should teach. Encourage and rebuke with all authority. Do not let anyone despise you” (v. 15). Jesus wants people who are eager to do good, so Titus, as a messenger of Christ, should encourage good behavior and speak out against bad behavior. He should not do anything that would cause people to despise him, because they would then de...

Titus 2:12–13 says that the grace of God teaches us “to live self-controlled, upright and godly lives in this present age, while we wait for the blessed hope—the appearing of the glory of our great God and Savior, Jesus Christ.” This passage identifies the “blessed hope” as the glorious appearing of Jesus Christ, our great God and Savior. Speaker: Viji Roberts Scripture: Titus 2:2-13 Reading Mater...

Paul tells us that people often judge the gospel by the way we live. Do we make the gospel look good, or do we give people a reason to complain? The gospel teaches grace, and grace teaches us something about the way we live. Speaker: Viji Roberts Scripture: Titus 2:2-10 Reading Material: https://1drv.ms/b/s! AtZn-btopJYtrhfbTxF_LASb5-Db?e=hJHQXM

Adorn means to decorate something. Ever wondered how can you adorn the gospel? Adorning doesn’t mean adding or subtracting anything from the gospel. Neither is the gospel powerless so that we need to add some “masala” to make it relevant and effective. The gospel is the power of God unto salvation. At the same time think about it, the gospel actually makes more sense to an unbeliever when they see...

In this portion, we begin the reading of Paul’s letter to one of his most trusted co-workers, Titus.  In about 63 AD, Paul had appointed this Gentle Christian to oversee the mission in Crete.  It was a challenging ministry because the church was young and susceptible to smooth talkers who were already deceiving whole households of church members (vs. 11). Paul instructs Titus to censure...

This letter would have been written about the same time as 1 Timothy. Paul has been released from his Roman house arrest after being acquitted by Caesar. Paul’s intention was to take the gospel west as far as Spain (Romans 15:24, 28), but before he did so, he strove to build up and exhort the established churches in Asia and Europe. We know about his visit to Ephesus where he left Timothy to minis...

Earlier in Acts 2 we saw the coming of the Holy Spirit upon the apostles. The multitudes have witnessed the apostles’ ability to speak in different languages and the multitudes want to know what this means. Peter, with the other eleven apostles, preach from Joel 2 explaining that these events were the fulfillment of Joel’s prophecy. Further, the apostles condemn the multitudes for killing the Mess...

In the previous verses, Peter has just explained to the crowd in Jerusalem that the Holy Spirit is working through the disciples. Now he shifts to preaching about Jesus Christ. He addresses his audience a second time, Men of Israel , to draw attention to what he is about to say: listen to these words . The words he will speak are for the Men of Israel specifically, because they have a firsthand co...

This passage is about Pentecost, the coming of the Holy Spirit. You cannot overstate how important this event is in the history of the church. Pentecost means 50; it was a festival that came 7 weeks or 50 days after Passover. The Lord commanded the Jews to observe it in order to give thanks for the first fruits of their harvest, which pointed to the fuller harvest to come. This pointed to the comi...

Luke begins Acts by reminding readers of his previous book, the Gospel of Luke, and the situation he had described at the end of that book. Jesus suffered and died and was raised from the dead. He appeared to the disciples and gave them a dramatic new understanding of the Scriptures (Luke 24:25-27, 45). The Old Testament had not only predicted the Messiah and his suffering, but it also predicted t...

How do you talk matter-of-factly about an event so mind-boggling as the raising of a person from the dead, the Resurrection of Jesus Christ? Hollywood would use special effects to impact the viewer. Novelists would employ powerful prose. But the Scripture just tells the story of the disciples, both male and female, as they discover this unexpected and life-jolting joy. And the Scripture tells it s...

The Biblical titles of Jesus Son of God, Messiah, and King have been so thoroughly absorbed as words for church and worship that their simple, earthly force is largely lost. Jesus’ crucifixion, however, did not occur on an altar between two candles, but outside the city between two convicts on a dismal executioner’s hill, called “The Skull.” The Gospel is the story of how Jesus the Messiah of God...

Jesus and his disciples were leaving the temple when one of them commented about how impressive that building was. By all accounts, it was a magnificent structure. At that time, it had been under construction for about 50 years. According to Jewish historian Josephus, some of the stones measured 35 feet long, 12 feet high, and 18 feet wide. Today, Israel's Western Wall (or Wailing Wall) is a part...

In this portion, we see Jesus in the temple. At the temple, Jesus drove out the merchants because they have made the House of Prayer into a den of thieves. Never mind if businesses serve the material needs of pilgrims who came from faraway places. The temple is sacred and for Jesus, it should never be a place to commit sin like profiteering and scamming in addition to the noise and foul smell that...

As we look at this portion and what happened 2000 years ago when Jesus enter Jerusalem, it is not what any of us would have done. Luke 19:28-44 sets the scene. This passage contains the first event in Christ’s final week—the event known as the Triumphal Entry. But as we will see, it is anything but “Triumphal.” A Triumphal Entry would be what the Jews were looking for. A Triumphal Entry would have...

Confusion and Uncertainty have long surrounded the topic of the coming kingdom of God. This was true when Jesus walked the earth and it remains true today. Yet the Bible offers abundant revelation about many specific aspects of the kingdom. Here the Pharisees kick things off with a question (cloaked in skepticism) about the timing of the kingdom promised in the OT. Jesus focuses their attention on...

In this portion, We see how God deeply loves and pursues us. He values us, being made in His image and pursues us. He invites us into a life with Him, as we love and pursue others. Series: The Acts of Christ And The Apostles Speaker: Pradeep Daniel Scripture: LUKE 15:1-32 Notes: https://1drv.ms/b/s! AtZn-btopJYtom0H9us3ZoDXvegO?e=yi4NyS

It seemed that some Jews had a belief about bad events were a form of punishment for bad deeds. In this passage, Jesus is firmly debunking that kind of negative thinking about God. Real repentance prepares for entrance into God’s kingdom and into new life which starts now but reaches fulfillment in the next life. The second parable underlines God’s patience in waiting for us to repent and to grow....

Jesus’ ministry on the earth was not without opposition. Though He preached the Word, healed the sick, cast out demons and did many other miraculous signs, there were still some who could not believe in Him, acknowledge Him or submit to His authority. Here we have a demon possessed, mute man healed and delivered- while many marveled, others said he cast out the demon by the ruler of demons!! Jesus...

Part of what it meant for Jesus to "determine to go to Jerusalem" was the growing presence of legal experts and Pharisees testing him with questions that sought to trap him. In this section, Jesus responded to three of those questions: To the question on how one could inherit eternal life, He answers  with a story showing in vivid human terms what it means to love your neighbor as yourself.&n...

This passage contains some very harsh statements. Jesus’ response to the first would-be follower is that – before deciding to follow Jesus – he should first count the cost. The closing sentence is even harder, ‘No one who puts a hand to the plough and looks back is fit for the kingdom of God.’ This is a Jesus who leaves no room for compromise. Not only must we follow Jesus, whatever the cost, but...