Bethel Community Church

Reformed Baptist Congregation Exaltation | Edification | Evangelism

A REFORMED BAPTIST CONGREGATION
EXALTATION  |  EDIFICATION  |  EVANGELISM
Sarasota, Florida
941-922-6007

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Spiritual Light

Jonathan Edwards distinguishes so clearly in his little sermon “The Reality of Spiritual Light” between real enlightenment for the believer and (any) light that might be given to the unbeliever. He says,

“In this spiritual light…(there is) a true sense of the divine and superlative excellency of the things of religion; a real sense of the excellency of God and Jesus Christ, and of the work of redemption, and the ways and works of God revealed in the Gospel. There is a divine and superlative glory in these things; an excellency that is of a vastly higher kind and more sublime nature, than in other things…He that is spiritually enlightened truly apprehends and sees it or has a sense of it. He does not merely rationally believe that God is glorious, but he has a sense of the gloriousness of God in his heart. There is not only a rational belief that God is holy, but there is a sense of the loveliness of God’s holiness.”

(Works, Vol. 2, p. 14)

Such a sense can only come as a result of the regenerating work of the Holy Spirit. The reality of it is sweet indeed.

The Milk Diet

“for everyone who lives on milk is unskilled in the word of righteousness, since he is a child” (Hebrews 5:13).

This verse is set in the context of apostasy, which makes it all the more serious. The writer to the Hebrews gives six warnings to his readers (2:1–4; 3:7–14; 5:11–6:20; 10:26–39; 12:15–17; 12:25–29). These warnings are exhortations to encourage the believer to continue in his or her faith. They are not merely hypothetical warnings (imaginary) but real warnings. This means we must listen to them and respond correctly. To ignore the warnings is perilous. The danger sign at the edge of a cliff is there for a reason. If you respond to it correctly, you would save your life, but if not, you would fall and die.

This is what the warnings mean in Hebrews. They are designed to prevent destruction. Ultimately, then, the warning passages in Hebrews have to do with salvation. Those who are truly saved will persevere and heed the warnings, and those who are not, either need to be saved or cannot be saved due to apostasy. They are also about the danger of profession. Just because we say we are Christians does not make us Christians. Lip service saves no one. The real evidence, at least outwardly, is fruit—”you will recognize them by their fruits” (Matt. 7:16, 20). [Read more…]

The Law of Worship

The book of Deuteronomy written by Moses is one of those books that are often neglected by Christians for a number of reasons. There is constant repetition of important truths and there is the length of the book – it requires hard work to read, understand and digest, but the benefits are worth it. In our English Bibles we refer to this book as “Deuteronomy” because of a mistranslation of Deut. 17:18 where that verse speaks of the future king of Israel sitting on this throne over his kingdom, writing for himself in a book “a copy of this law”. This is often referred to as “second law”,hence the name Deuteronomy. The Hebrew title begins with the opening words of the book in Deut. 1:1 – “these are the words.”

The book of Deuteronomy generally follows the structural pattern of an ancient vassal treaty, but this should not be pushed too far. It is preferable to see the book as the last words of Moses to the nation prior to their preparations to enter the land under Joshua. Ancient kings often entered into treaties or pacts with vassal countries, and those treaties contained a certain structure. There was an introduction, a historical overview (the king’s dealings with the vassal), a general call to allegiance, a specific call to allegiance, the witnessing of the treaty by divine gods, blessings and cursings for obedience or disobedience. [Read more…]

The Ships Were Wrecked

Jehoshaphat (ca. 873 – 848 B.C.) of Judah was one of the few good kings in the Old Testament, but he made mistakes. He decided to go into the shipbuilding business. He probably sought to emulate the great fleet of King Solomon, but the results were not good. In fact, all of his ships were destroyed at Ezion-geber situated in Edomite territory. The reason his ships were destroyed was because he entered into a partnership with Ahaziah, king of Israel. This was probably also due to some marriage alliance. Ahaziah was the son of wicked Ahab, and as such was no better than his father. In addition, Jehoshaphat had given his son in marriage to Ahab’s daughter named Athaliah. She nearly destroyed the Davidic line due to her wickedness (2 Chron. 22:10). Jehoshaphat’s problem apart from his excellent strengths and spiritual life was that he tended to make alliances with wicked partners. It was these alliances that caused him so much trouble.  [Read more…]

The Danger of Merits

I like how Calvin puts it: “When we present our merits to God – we ask for his judgment upon us & not his mercy & therefore, we are condemned.” (Inst. 3. 20. 45)

What Do You Do With Faith (1 Timothy 4:1, 2) June 8, 2025

Conscience & Confession (Genesis 50:15 – 21) June 8, 2025

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