Past, Present and Future

Our speaker during Family Bible Hour was Mr Steve Modrzejewski. His message was based on Titus 2:

¹¹For the grace of God that bringeth salvation hath appeared to all men,
 ¹²Teaching us that, denying ungodliness and worldly lusts, we should live soberly, righteously, and godly, in this present world;
 ¹³Looking for that blessed hope, and the glorious appearing of the great God and our Saviour Jesus Christ;
 ¹⁴Who gave himself for us, that he might redeem us from all iniquity, and purify unto himself a peculiar people, zealous of good works.
 ¹⁵These things speak, and exhort, and rebuke with all authority. Let no man despise thee.

The passage speaks of the Past, Present, and Future of the Christmas message-

• Past vs 11 -- the grace of God had appeared
• Present vs 12 -- the discipline, righteousness, godly living, change in attitude, and growth in sanctification that is now possible because of the message of salvation in Christ
• Future  vs 13 -- we can look forward to Christ's glorious and majestic return

Mr Modrzejewski's message, in full and in context, is available on DVD. Please see Romy.

Luke 1: 5-25

Our speaker during Family Bible Hour was Mr Steve Modrzejewski. His message was based on Luke 1:

⁵THERE was in the days of Herod, the king of Judaea, a certain priest named Zacharias, of the course of Abia: and his wife was of the daughters of Aaron, and her name was Elisabeth.

 ⁶And they were both righteous before God, walking in all the commandments and ordinances of the Lord blameless.

 ⁷And they had no child, because that Elisabeth was barren, and they both were now well stricken in years.

 ⁸And it came to pass, that while he executed the priest's office before God in the order of his course,

 ⁹According to the custom of the priest's office, his lot was to burn incense when he went into the temple of the Lord.

 ¹⁰And the whole multitude of the people were praying without at the time of incense.

 ¹¹And there appeared unto him an angel of the Lord standing on the right side of the altar of incense.

 ¹²And when Zacharias saw him, he was troubled, and fear fell upon him.

 ¹³But the angel said unto him, Fear not, Zacharias: for thy prayer is heard; and thy wife Elisabeth shall bear thee a son, and thou shalt call his name John.

 ¹⁴And thou shalt have joy and gladness; and many shall rejoice at his birth.

 ¹⁵For he shall be great in the sight of the Lord, and shall drink neither wine nor strong drink; and he shall be filled with the Holy Ghost, even from his mother's womb.

 ¹⁶And many of the children of Israel shall he turn to the Lord their God.

 ¹⁷And he shall go before him in the spirit and power of Elias, to turn the hearts of the fathers to the children, and the disobedient to the wisdom of the just; to make ready a people prepared for the Lord.

 ¹⁸And Zacharias said unto the angel, Whereby shall I know this? for I am an old man, and my wife well stricken in years.

 ¹⁹And the angel answering said unto him, I am Gabriel, that stand in the presence of God; and am sent to speak unto thee, and to shew thee these glad tidings.

 ²⁰And, behold, thou shalt be dumb, and not able to speak, until the day that these things shall be performed, because thou believest not my words, which shall be fulfilled in their season.

 ²¹And the people waited for Zacharias, and marvelled that he tarried so long in the temple.

 ²²And when he came out, he could not speak unto them: and they perceived that he had seen a vision in the temple: for he beckoned unto them, and remained speechless.

 ²³And it came to pass, that, as soon as the days of his ministration were accomplished, he departed to his own house.

 ²⁴And after those days his wife Elisabeth conceived, and hid herself five months, saying,

 ²⁵Thus hath the Lord dealt with me in the days wherein he looked on me, to take away my reproach among men.

From the above passage, we learn the following about God -

• He uses faithful, common people
• He "moves" when we are faithful
• He answers prayers
• He has a plan for us
• His timing is perfect
• and, He honors His Word

Mr Modrzejewski's message, in full and in context, is available on DVD. Please see Romy.

Genesis 28

Our speaker during Family Bible Hour was Mr Bob Titus; pictured with his wife, daughter, and sister, Irene. His message was based on Genesis 28 ---

¹⁰And Jacob went out from Beersheba, and went toward Haran.
 ¹¹And he lighted upon a certain place, and tarried there all night, because the sun was set; and he took of the stones of that place, and put them for his pillows, and lay down in that place to sleep.
 ¹²And he dreamed, and behold a ladder set up on the earth, and the top of it reached to heaven: and behold the angels of God ascending and descending on it.
 ¹³And, behold, the LORD stood above it, and said, I am the LORD God of Abraham thy father, and the God of Isaac: the land whereon thou liest, to thee will I give it, and to thy seed;
 ¹⁴And thy seed shall be as the dust of the earth, and thou shalt spread abroad to the west, and to the east, and to the north, and to the south: and in thee and in thy seed shall all the families of the earth be blessed.
 ¹⁵And, behold, I am with thee, and will keep thee in all places whither thou goest, and will bring thee again into this land; for I will not leave thee, until I have done that which I have spoken to thee of.
 ¹⁶And Jacob awaked out of his sleep, and he said, Surely the LORD is in this place; and I knew it not.
 ¹⁷And he was afraid, and said, How dreadful is this place! this is none other but the house of God, and this is the gate of heaven.
 ¹⁸And Jacob rose up early in the morning, and took the stone that he had put for his pillows, and set it up for a pillar, and poured oil upon the top of it.
 ¹⁹And he called the name of that place Bethel: but the name of that city was called Luz at the first.
 ²⁰And Jacob vowed a vow, saying, If God will be with me, and will keep me in this way that I go, and will give me bread to eat, and raiment to put on,
 ²¹So that I come again to my father's house in peace; then shall the LORD be my God:
 ²²And this stone, which I have set for a pillar, shall be God's house: and of all that thou shalt give me I will surely give the tenth unto thee.

This was a time of desperation for Jacob, and the future was uncertain. God reveals Himself to him; and we also see a picture of the Lord Jesus' work on our behalf in Jacob's dream of the ladder that reaches from earth to heaven. We must remember that in our neediest times, the Lord is still with us. Mr Titus' message, in full and in context, is available on DVD. Please see Romy.