Bridging The Gap

Our final study in Lloyd’s series “Essential Christianity”, begins today. If you’re a movie buff, you’re familiar with epics like Gone with the Wind, Star Wars and the like. Movie makers always save something special for the big finale, don’t they? Today we’ll be looking at Romans chapter eight, verses thirty-one through thirty-nine and some of the most powerful words in all the Bible.

Today on Bridging the Gap, pastor Lloyd Pulley tackles the question of our predestination as sinners saved by Grace through Jesus Christ. Does God know ahead of time who will say yes and who will say no to His Son? Romans chapter eight, verses twenty-six through thirty is our scripture text.

We’ve taken the last several weeks to carefully go through a study of Romans chapters five through eight, titled “Essential Christianity”,  and today we find ourselves in chapter eight, verses twenty-six through thirty. God will cause all things to work together for good if we love God, but does that mean we can go to Him as if He were a catalog store? 

Today on Bridging the Gap, Pastor Lloyd Pulley continues our study in Romans chapter eight as we look at the future, and what we have to eagerly look forward to. TV? Computers? Nothing of the sort! How about eternal perfection with Jesus Christ?

Today on Bridging the Gap, we continue our study in Romans chapter eight as we look at verses eighteen through twenty five. Paul tells us that all creation will be freed from the bondage of our current limitations. What exactly does that mean? Join us in Romans chapter eight.

Do you know someone who, when they became a born again Christian thought that all of their problems would suddenly disappear? Perhaps you fall into this category. It’s a common mistake. Today as Lloyd continues our study through Romans chapter eight, we’ll again be reminded that suffering and persecution are both commonplace occurrences in the life of a Christian. Can you still glorify God while going though various trials?

Romans is one of the truly great books in all the Bible. Theologians have spent many happy hours dissecting and digesting the awesome truths found in these verses. Chapter eight is especially rich with promises for us. Today we’ll concentrate our study on verse sixteen through eighteen, where we are told that the Holy Spirit bears witness to the believer.

When we’re in the midst of a fiery trial it’s sometimes hard to see its value, but as we’ll see today in Romans, God wants to use these experiences in our lives to mold and shape us to be more like Christ. We’re His adopted children! 

We’re studying Romans chapter eight, and today we’ll make a return visit to the first four verses. This is a wonderful chapter in that it reminds us that through Jesus Christ, we have nothing to fear as far as our eternal future is concerned. He paid the price for us on the cross and no matter how badly we foul things up, He’s there waiting for us.

Pastor Lloyd has titled our current series “Essential Christianity”, because the fundamentals of our Christian faith is what this wonderful chapter is all about. We’ll find out today that chapter eight of Romans is particularly significant for believers in Jesus Christ...and extremely encouraging I might add.  We’ll be examining our “No Condemnation” status here today on the broadcast.

I’m sure you’ve noticed the way Christmas has changed over the past several decades. What happened? Pastor Lloyd brings us back to the real meaning of Christmas today, and I can’t think of anything we need to be reminded of more, can you? 

Christmas is truly a wonderful day, isn’t it? It’s the day when we celebrate the birth of Jesus Christ, God in human form, who came to this earth with one task to perform - to die for our sins so we wouldn’t have to! He is a wonderful counselor! That’s the true meaning of Christmas, and the subject of today’s message. 

We aim to complete Romans chapter seven today.  Those of you who joined us last time may recall that we discussed the Christian’s lifelong battle with sin.  Once we enter the body of Christ, we gain a desire to live for and please God, but the old sinful nature doesn’t completely disappear... creating a certain tension.  Today, pastor Lloyd shows us how God has equipped us for the battle.

The apostle Paul provides nuggets of wisdom throughout the book of Romans that we would all do well to heed!  When we come to Christ, does that mean all of a sudden we stop sinning?  No, but while we’re certainly not sinless, we will sin less than before we met our Savior.

Those of you who joined us last time may recall that we discussed the Christian’s lifelong battle with sin.  Once we enter the body of Christ, we gain a desire to live for and please God, but the old sinful nature doesn’t completely disappear.

If you’ve been a Christian for any length of time, you’ll be able to identify firsthand with the battle we’re about to discuss here today.  Once Christ enters our life, we gain a desire to live for God.  Along with that remains a desire to live for sin and pleasure.  It’s a constant battle in every Christian’s life!

We’re currently studying Romans chapters five through eight, in a series titled “Essential Christianity”, and we find ourselves today in chapter seven, concentrating on the first six verses.  There are thousands laws in the books and occasionally one will sneak its way in, and the public can’t help but wonder what it’s purpose is.  The law of God doesn’t work that way.  There is a clear, definite, identifiable purpose for its existence, and we’ll see what it is here now.

On today’s program, Pastor Lloyd Pulley will  begin a  study of Romans chapter seven, which depicts man’s struggle with sin. We try to do the right thing, but we can’t seem to conquer our sin. That’s why Jesus Christ died on the cross! HE conquered sin and delivered us from the law.

Today on Bridging the Gap, Pastor Lloyd Pulley will show us that there is such a situation where slavery is a good thing! When we become slaves to righteousness through Jesus Christ! We’re studying Romans chapter six right now, so turn there in your Bible and join us.

 Our study of Romans chapters five through eight resumes on this broadcast.  Pastor Lloyd Pulley is once again in the sixth chapter, and we’ll be concentrating on verses eleven through fourteen. Pastor Lloyd has titled this message “From Slavery to Sin to Fruit unto God”.