Oxford Bible Church - Living in the Last Days

Explore hidden depths in the Parable of the Good Samaritan (Luke 10:25-37). As well as teaching us what it means to be a good neighbour this Parable reveals the Gospel in code. It also gives a hint that Jesus will return after 2 DAYS (2000 years).

Psalms 3 and 4 connect together, for both took place just before the battle with Absalom's army (2Samuel 18). Whereas Psalm 4 is set in the evening before the battle, Psalm 3 is set on the morning of the battle, so when David declares in Psalm 3:4 that he has prayed and God has heard him, this refers to his prayer in 4:1. Likewise his belief he would sleep well in 4:8 was fulfilled (3:5). Compare...

Last time in Psalm 4, we saw how David prayed for victory over the army of Absalom (2Samuel 18), putting his faith in His covenant-keeping God (v1), bringing him full assurance, resulting in confident declarations of faith flowing out of his prayer (v2-5). Next he describes the inner peace and happiness that he possessed through his fellowship with God in prayer (v6-8). He points out that most peo...

Who were the Wise Men (Magi), and why did they expect the birth of the King of the Jews at that time, and why were they looking for His Star? What was the Star of Bethlehem - a comet, supernova, conjunction of planets, or a manifestation of God’s Glory? If it was the Glory of God, what was its connection with the other manifestation of Glory at that time? How did the Magi know it was the Messiah's...

In part 1, we saw that David wrote this Psalm in his prayer time after he woke up (v5) on the morning of the battle against his son Absalom's large army (2Samuel 18). The previous evening he had prayed through to an assurance of victory. This prayer is recorded in Psalm 4. As a result he could sleep sweetly knowing that God would keep him safe (4:8, 3:5). Whatever battles we face in life, the main...

The heading of this Psalm is 'A Psalm of David when he fled from Absalom, his son.' We study the background to this Psalm in 2Samuel 11 - 18, starting with David's sin with Bathsheba, resulting in the killing of Uriah (2Sam 11), Nathan's rebuke of David and announcement of how David would reap what he had sowed in his own family and kingdom, even though God forgave David and spared his life, when...

God has already provided healing for us in the Atonement of Christ, so now it is not a matter of trying to get God to heal us, but of learning how to RECEIVE our HEALING. We need to RECEIVE our HEALING by FAITH in the Word of God. Mark 11:24: “Whatsoever THINGS you desire (such as HEALING), when you pray, BELIEVE that (1) you RECEIVE them (your HEALING), and (2) you will HAVE them (in manifestatio...

Jesus is the Christ, the Anointed One (v2) for 3 offices: Prophet, Priest & King, to preach, pray & reign (in Christ, we share all 3 anointings). (1) First, He was anointed a PROPHET (to declare God's Word to men) at His Baptism, authorised by the Father speaking from Heaven (Matt 3:17). Then (2) His initial ministry of HIGH PRIEST, to offer Himself as a Sacrifice on the Cross, endorsed by Father...

Christ declares the Decree of the Lord in Psalm 2:7, starting by confessing His IDENTITY - His SONSHIP, as the Firstborn from the dead. Then in v8, He continued to declare what God said to Him at His Resurrection-Ascension: "Ask of Me, and I will give You (1) the nations for Your inheritance, and (2) the ends of the earth for Your possession." The spiritual warfare between the Kingdom of God and t...

In Psalm 2:6, God declares the victory that He has won through Christ, by saying: “Yet I have set My King (Jesus Christ) on My holy Hill of Zion (in Heaven).” This was accomplished by God's Decree, by which He raised Christ from the dead and caused Him to ascend to God's right hand (Psalm 110:1). Next in Psalm 2:7, Christ, the King, starts to declare this Decree: “I will declare the Decree: The Lo...

Psalm 2:1-3 describes the present spiritual warfare with mankind in confusion and rebellion against the Lord and His Anointed (Christ). The Lord in Heaven laughs them to scorn (v4) and then speaks to them in His wrath (v5), declaring His answer to all their puny efforts to overthrow His authority: “Yet I have set My King (Jesus Christ) on My holy Hill of Zion” (v6). This was fulfilled by the Ascen...

Psalm 2 is a Messianic Psalm of importance, much quoted in the NT, a cosmic Drama describing the present spiritual warfare in the Church Age, especially as it comes to its climax. Along with Ps 1, it's part of the Entrance Hall into the Book of Psalms. Ps 1 reveals the contrast between the righteous & wicked on an individual level, Ps 2 reveals it on a global scale, showing the spiritual conflict...

We can’t follow Jesus in our own strength. We must depend on His Spirit to live the life of a true disciple. The key to surrender is embracing the truth we are slaves ('doulos') of Christ, translated servant (Rom 1:1, Phil 1:1, Titus 1:1, Jas 1:1 2Pet 1:1, Jude 1:1, Rev 1:1). A slave is owned by his master, owning nothing himself, but a servant still owns himself and things. We are owned by Christ...

Having described the nature and blessing of the righteous, being like a blessed, upright, strong tree planted by God's River of Life (1:1-3), it declares: "No so, the ungodly, not so!" (v4). He then compares the ungodly to the chaff, which the wind drives away (1:4). We describe threshing, when the chaff is separated from the wheat, and winnowing, when both wheat and chaff are thrown up into the a...

Psalm 1:3 says the blessed man, who meditates day and night in God's Word will "be like a TREE planted by the RIVERS of WATER that brings forth its fruit in its season, whose leaf also shall not wither; and whatever he does shall prosper." Our ROOT system is our FAITH in God, which connects us to God's life and grace in His Spirit. The secret of a tree’s success is its roots, which are invisible,...

We start our studies in Psalms by introducing the Book of Psalms as a whole. It is God’s Hymnbook, the longest book of Bible (150 chapters), which shows the importance of praise and worship. It is poetry, the language of the heart, set to music, designed to tune our hearts to God. It is given to inspire our response to God and His revelation. Just like the Torah, it is divided into 5 books. The fi...

Наша хвала (1) БЛАГОСЛОВЛЯЕТ Бога, (2) ПРИНОСИТ ПОЛЬЗУ нам и (3) СВЯЗЫВАЕТ врага (Псалом 149). Жертва хвалы – это благодарность Богу прежде, чем мы увидим ответ. Мы видим три примера, которые показывают, как это подготавливает путь и открывает дверь в Духе для того, чтобы Бог мог высвободить Свою спасительную силу в нашу жизнь и ситуации.

Following Christ as Lord means we must accept the truth we belong to Him. We don’t own ourselves. Once we embrace His absolute authority, then surrendering (our independence) to Him follows naturally, and obedience flows naturally from this surrender. This is liberating, as we can let go of trying to control everything ourselves. The essence of sin is not just rejecting God's authority, but also H...

We are slaves of Christ, our Master and Owner. We belong to Him. He owns us and all we have (Rom 6:22, 1Cor 7:22). His Spirit within is the seal of His ownership (1Cor 6:19,20, 2Cor 1:22, Eph 1:13, 4:30). There’s a word for servant (diakonos), and another for slave (doulos), describing our relationship with God (Rom 1:1, Phil 1:1, Titus 1:1, Jas 1:1 2Pet 1:1, Jude 1:1, Rev 1:1). We miss the truth...

“Your body is the Temple of the Holy Spirit, who is in you, whom you have from God, and you are NOT your OWN? For you were BOUGHT at a PRICE (His Blood); therefore, glorify God in your body and spirit, which are God’s (property)” (1Cor 6:19-20). We are OWNED by God, SLAVES of Christ, not just servants, so all we are and have belongs to Him. He has the right to define who we are and make us who He...

The essence of discipleship is a love relationship with the Lord - a true disciple loves Him and seeks to express that in his life. Discipleship begins with the Gospel - the message of God's awesome love for us (1John 4:19). We need a revelation of His love for us, to receive His love and then give our love to Him. Once our heart is converted to Christ, we become His disciple and our whole life be...

Psalm 83 is a Prophetic Prayer describing by name a confederacy of nations, which surround her, who all want to destroy Israel in the end-times. Derek and Tim explain how this Prophecy has been fulfilled in detail in the wars that Israel has faced since her rebirth in 1948, including the present Israel war with Hamas. The Psalm is an inspired prayer that God would give Israel military victory, as...

Psalm 83 is a Prophetic Prayer describing by name a confederacy of nations, which surround her, who all want to destroy Israel in the end-times. Derek and Tim explain how this Prophecy has been fulfilled in detail in the wars that Israel has faced since her rebirth in 1948, including the present Israel war with Hamas. The Psalm is an inspired prayer that God would give Israel military victory, as...

The essence of discipleship is a love relationship with the Lord Jesus (Matt 22:37-38, Mark 12:30, Luke 10:27). A true disciple loves the Lord and seeks to express that in his life by pleasing and glorifying Him. This is not a legalism, but the obedience of love. The keeping of commandments is an expression of love (John 14:15). Without the motivation of love our Christian life just becomes outwar...

God has a mission for us to fulfil. He sends us to preach the Gospel and make disciples (Mark 16:15-20, Matt 28:18-20). His Purpose is to save as many as possible and we must play our part. We need His POWER to be effective in His work of being His witness (Acts 1:8). That’s what the BAPTISM in the SPIRIT is about. If you are saved, you have the Spirit WITHIN, but you also need to receive the anoi...