Gary Gleans

The book of Revelation is one of the hardest books of the Bible to understand because of all of the figurative language and the fact that it is dealing with future events.  There are several different ways that Revelation has been interpreted that range from describing ancient history to current events to future events.  However, it seems best to interpret Revelation according to the way John says he wrote it as reveling God’s plan for the future and how the second coming of Christ will take place.  This was the last book of the Bible to be written and it was written by the last living apostle, John, who wrote from exile.  John records visions that were delivered to him by angels who helped him to understand and interpret the visions that he saw.  He starts with a quick introduction of reviewing how Jesus was presented as glorified in the past and how John came to have this vision.  He then writes brief letters to seven churches who at the present time were the original readers of thi

Jude was written by the brother of James and the half-brother of Jesus.  Both James and Jude had rejected Jesus during His ministry on earth but after the crucifixion and resurrection they became convinced that their brother really was Messiah.  That had to have been a staggering discovery for both of them.  Once they were convinced of this truth; they both became vital leaders in the church and human authors of Scripture.  It is exactly this type of transformation that Satan wants nothing more than to destroy in the lives of men.  The transformation of the souls of men through the Gospel of Christ is something that Satan would like to be able to thwart at all costs.  Jude continues the theme of fighting false teachers that we have seen in several of the previous books.  Jude quotes 2 Peter so it seems that it was written shortly after this from Jerusalem to believing Jews and believers in general who are coming under attack from false teachers. DEFEND THE FAITH: Jude calls believ

The cause of Christ is expanded through a variety of means by a variety of people with a variety of different functions.  Itinerant preachers were an important part of the expansion of the early church as they carried messages from the apostles as well as were instrumental in providing consistent teaching for the churches.  These ministers of God’s Word needed to be lovingly received and cared for by those to whom they ministered.  As we saw in 2 John there were also itinerant false teachers who would travel from church to church destroying what the faithful messengers were striving to build.  The purpose of this letter is to encourage an elder named Gaius to continue his practice of offering hospitality to the faithful ministers of God and to condemn Diotrephes who refused to serve in this way. HOSPITALITY EXEMPLIFIED BY LOVE: Gaius must have been a personal friend of John’s and a leader in one of the churches for which John was responsible.  He was a great example of love and st

Discernment is one of the most important disciplines that we can develop in our lives.  God has called us to be wise in the way that we walk.  It would be so nice if everyone was honest and transparent about their motives in life.  Unfortunately, that is not the case.  There are many people who will claim to be believers who have been deceived or they themselves are deceivers.  We must be able to discern the difference between those who are genuine in their faith and intentions and those who are out to destroy the faith by propagating false doctrines.   THE DELIGHT OF HOSPITALITY: It is a great joy to be able to enjoy fellowship with our brothers and sisters in Christ.  John obviously writes to a sister in Christ with whom he has enjoyed this sweet fellowship.  However, this kind of fellowship finds its basis in genuine Christian love and obedience to the Word of God.  This seems to be a wonderful family where the children of this sister in Christ are being a great example of this

John most likely writes his first Epistle as an elderly man.  Most of his fellow apostles have been martyred by this time and the church has been under severe attack for many years by this time.  Some of these attacks came from outside the church in the form of Roman or Jewish persecution and some of the attacks came from inside the church in the form of false teaching and ungodly living.  These circumstances had a tendency to leave the church living in uncertainty.  John's focus in this book is to try to help his readers to be able to discern between true faith that leads to eternal life and the false faith of people who might be within the physical fellowship of the church but do not have true fellowship with Christ.  These are important distinctions that we must learn to discern in the church and our own lives today.  There are many people who profess faith in Christ but their attitudes and actions do not align with this profession.  On the other hand, Satan is constantly seeki

There are basically two sources of danger for the church.  In First Peter the danger of external persecution was the main focus.  In Second Peter the danger of internal corruption becomes the focus.  The point is that the true church is almost always under one of these two attacks if not both of them.  Peter is coming to the close of his life and ministry he is most likely in Rome suffering under the persecution of Nero and would soon be crucified.  But before he dies he wants to remind his readers to stand firm in their faith in the face of false teachings in light of future judgment.  Each chapter of this powerful book deals with one of those three themes.  We must be careful to not be deceived by those who desire to destroy our faith or distract us from the purpose for which we have been called to be a part of God’s family. FIRM FAITH: The supernatural power of God and the precious promises of Scripture provide us will all of the resources that we need in order to have a firm f

Peter writes this first Epistle from Rome during a time of great persecution.  The Emperor, Nero, had more than likely set fire to the city of Rome because of his great desire to build new edifices.  However, the political backlash for doing this would have been disastrous so he blamed the Christians for setting these fires and then started a huge campaign to exterminate Christians all over the Roman Empire.  Peter would eventually be killed in this persecution but he writes to believers who have been chased from their homes and are being falsely accused in order to help them deal with this situation in a manner pleasing to the Lord.  Peter exhorts his readers to remember their experience of salvation in the past.  He then calls them to walk in a manner pleasing to the Lord in the present.  He concludes by pointing them towards their hope in the future.  All believers in every generation must seek to live in their present circumstances with one eye looking back at what Christ has done

James was written by the half-brother of Jesus who, at first, rejected Jesus as the Messiah but later believed and became the leader of the church in Jerusalem.  He was later martyred for his faith so we know that this is one of the earliest books of the New Testament to be written if not the earliest.  It is written to believing Jews who had been scattered from Jerusalem by persecution initially by the Jews with Saul (Paul) leading the way and then by the Roman Empire.  It is a very practical book that clearly tells us how we are believers ought to live in the midst of trials, how we ought to obey the Word of God, how we can tell that our faith is genuine, how we out to treat one another and how we ought to walk with God.  There are times where James seems to contradict Paul’s teaching on justification by faith apart from works when he declares that faith without works is dead.  However, upon closer examination we can clearly see that both Paul and James agree that salvation is by fa

The book of Hebrews is one of the most difficult books of the Bible for us to interpret because of several factors.  First, we are not sure who the author is. Second, we are not sure who the recipients are. Third, we are not sure exactly when it was written.  These things are not essential to interpretation but they certainly help.  Much speculation is made as to whom the author might be but it is impossible to be dogmatic on this issue.  It seems unlikely to be Paul since he does not identify himself like he does in all of his other Epistles.  Whoever the author was, they had a deep knowledge of the Levitical system of sacrifice which seems to still be in place at the time of the writing.  This gives us our best clue as to the recipients and the time of the writing.  Since the temple seems to still be functioning we must assume the book was written prior to its destruction in 70AD.  The recipients also seem to be predominantly Jewish believers.  However, it is important to note that

Forgiveness and restoration are central themes to the Christian faith.  Through the blood of Christ we have been forgiven of our sin and restored to a right relationship with Christ.  All of our sins are against God, but many times our sins are also against other people.  For this reason, we must also learn to exercise forgiveness and practice restoration in our relationships with one another.  The basis for this practice between believers is the forgiveness that we have experience in Christ.  The presumption that we must make is that those who have experienced forgiveness from God will, themselves be ready and willing to forgive others.  This may seem like a big presumption and, unfortunately it does not always happen that way, but it really should.  That truth is clearly illustrated in the book of Philemon. FORGIVENESS FLOWS FROM TRANSFORMATION: Paul begins this letter with his normal greetings and then words of great encouragement to Philemon.  Paul has apparently lead Philemon

Titus was another one of Paul’s traveling companions much like Timothy.  After Paul’s release from his first Roman imprisonment he visited an island called Crete and saw the seeds of a new church planted there. He decided to leave Titus there to continue planting the church and then traveled on to Macedonia.  While in Macedonia he wrote to Timothy in Ephesus which we know as 1 Timothy and he wrote this letter to Titus.  Both of these letters give a very good job description for church planters.  Paul lets Titus know exactly how he should be investing his time as a minister leading a new church.  That job description continues to hold true even today.  As we seek to establish churches in the nations of the world today there are basically just two things that are required. TRAINING LEADERS: Paul states that the main reason he was left in Crete was for the purpose of selecting and training leaders for the church.  The long term success of any ministry depends on qualified leadership.

2 Timothy is like the passing of a baton in a relay race.  This is Paul’s last letter and it was written from Rome during Paul’s second imprisonment.  Nero was on a rampage against the Christians and Paul was arrested as a part of this movement.  This imprisonment was far different from his first one when he was more or less under house arrest.  Now he is chained in a dungeon and has no hope of release.  He is convinced that his execution is at hand and he is ready to go the heaven.  However, before he goes he desperately wants to see Timothy again and writes this letter to urge him to come and see him at once.  The rest of Paul’s companions have either abandoned him for fear of persecution or have been dispatched by Paul to minister in other locations.  Paul seems to fear that Timothy may be allowing his timidity to get the best of him so he urges him to stand strong against the waves of persecution and the tides of apostasy that were battering the church that Paul loves so dearly. 

Timothy was one of Paul’s most trusted disciples.  He was a young man who traveled with Paul extensively and faithfully completed the tasks assigned to him.  He was trustworthy so Paul entrusted him with many responsibilities during times where Paul was not able to do what needed to be done.  After Paul was imprisoned in Rome the first time, he went and visited several of the churches he had planted including Ephesus.  When Paul left Ephesus to go visit the churches in Macedonia he left Timothy there to set the church in order and deal with several problems that were going on there.  Paul writes this letter to Timothy in order to help him know what to do as he deals with a variety of issues in the church.  Paul’s letters help us to understand how churches should be run as well as the roles that we need to play in the church. HOW TO ORGANIZE A CHURCH: The most important aspect of organizing a church is the truth.  As Paul tells Timothy how to go about organizing the church it is si

Paul apparently receives an update as to the condition of the church when whoever took the first letter returns to Corinth.  Paul is greatly concerned to hear about the persecution that the church is facing but even more concerned about the false teachings that are producing wrong ways of living.  This concern leads Paul to write this second epistle to the church in order to address these issues.  More than likely this second letter is written within a year of the first letter to the same group of people. COMFORT FOR THE DICOURAGED: Paul is very thankful to the Lord for the faithfulness of this church in spite of the great affliction and persecution that they are facing.  Paul knew firsthand how zealous the persecutors where in Thessalonica.  He encourages them to continue to be steadfast and not give up no matter how hard it seems.  He also reminds them of the great hope and promise that they have in Christ.  One day He will put an end to all of this injustice and suffering on the

The church at Thessalonica was the second one that Paul started in Macedonia.  The city was one of the most prominent of the region and was strategically located along the Ignatius way which means it received many visitors who were traveling this major trade route.  Paul’s initial visit was cut short by the persecution he faced from the Jews in the city.  So he fled from there to Berea where the Jews from Thessalonica followed him and kicked him out of that city where he left his traveling companions Silvanus and Timothy.  Paul went on to Athens and then Corinth where he stayed for about a year and a half.  While in Corinth Paul sent Timothy back to Thessalonica to check in on the church, encourage them and then report back to Paul as to how they were doing.  This letter is Paul’s response to Timothy’s report.  Paul has some very high praise for the church as well as some very important instructions about vital areas for their Christian life.  We can be greatly benefited by this book

False doctrine has always been a problem since the entrance of in in the world.  Everything that is of value ends up being the object of forgery.  Perhaps true doctrine is the most valuable thing in the world.  The church in Colosse was made up of both Jews and Gentiles so it suffered from influences of two different extremes: Jewish legalism and Gentile mysticism.  Paul’s desire is to promote sound doctrine in the church as well as the practical application of that doctrine.  The principle heresy in Colosse became known as Gnosticism and ended up being an issue in many of the churches of that day.  Gnosticism considers the physical world to be sinful so it promotes the idea that in order to be saved we must have a spiritual enlightenment that involves a mystical deeper knowledge of God that goes beyond what is taught in Scripture.  The incarnation and the deity of Christ were both under attack by these false teachings.  Jesus was seen to be less than God and the resurrection was doub

The church in Philippi was a great source of joy to the Apostle Paul.  It was his first church planted in Macedonia and the place where he was imprisoned with Silas but an earthquake resulted in the conversion of the jailer and his family.  This church was one of his most faithful supporters from both an emotional and financial standpoint.  Paul writes this letter as a way of thanking them for their support as well as explaining to them why he thought it wise to send Epaphroditus back to them after his almost fatal illness.  He makes use of the letter to give them so valuable instruction and urge them to be united with one another.  This is an exemplary church for which Paul is very grateful.  However, because it is such a great church Paul has great concern for it because he knows that it will likely come under attack from Satan.  The area Paul seems most concerned about is in their unity with one another.  Division in the body of Christ continues to be as issue in the church today a

Paul writes the book of Ephesians from prison in order to remind the church of the basic doctrines and duties of the faith.  In many ways this book seems like an abridged version of Romans.  Of all the cities where Paul ministered, Ephesus was the place where Paul spent the most time.  It is also the place where he had an amazing impact on the people as well as the entire region.  Acts tells us that he spent two years teaching his disciples here and that he exercised great healing powers.  Many were healed by him personally and even cloths that were taken from him and given to sick people made many of them well.  This ministry was so effective and powerful that the entire region of Asia Minor heard the Gospel.  The city was the industrial center for the entire region which may explain why the Spirit of God originally prohibited Paul’s first attempts to go into Asia Minor in other locations.  It was also a very idolatrous city and the home of the temple of Diana.  The impact the Gospel

False doctrine is one of Satan’s favorite tools to attack believers and the church.  There may be many reasons behind why false teachers do what they do, ranging from financial gain to personal popularity.  However, the underlying and true motives behind false teaching are that Satan wants to destroy the church, destroy believers and keep unbelievers trapped in their sin.  The epistle of Galatians was written to a group of churches that Paul founded in the southern part of a region of the Roman Empire called Galatia, this is modern day Turkey.  This church was under attack by Judaizes who were trying to impose the Law on the Gentile believers as a means of salvation.  Paul had clearly taught them that justification is through faith in the finished work of Christ on the cross.  However, false teachers were coming in and preaching a salvation of works be keeping the Law.  In this letter Paul takes this heresy head on; exposing the false teachers and calling the church back to sound doct