The Christian Faith Podcast

Who Are We Married To?

In Romans 7, the Apostle Paul considers how our efforts to keep the law bring us under bondage. In doing so, however, he brings to light, by means of an analogy regarding the relationship of a wife with her husband, a great secret concerning our relationship both with ourselves and with Christ (Rom. 7:1-4).If we see this secret, it will give us a deeper realization of our need to be freed from our self-life so that we may walk with Christ in newness of life (Rom. 6:4, 8).
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OUR WEBSITETheChristianFaith.org
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RESOURCES
The Standard Version of the New Testament on Amazon
For More Information visit TheStandardVersion.org
Books
Titus ChuThe Song of Songs: A Divine Romance
HymnText: “I Am Not My Own,” by A.B. SimpsonA Recording by the Church in Willoughby
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BIBLE VERSES REFERENCEDIN THIS EPISODE
Romans 7:1-4: Who are we married to?Romans 6:1-8: Dying and living with Christ in newness of life.
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RecordingRecorded in Chicago, Illinois on Monday, 10 June 2024

The Seven Churches (8): Why “Philadelphia”?

Among the seven churches in Revelation 2-3, it is the church in Philadelphia that fulfills the Lord’s desire. But, why did the Lord, under His sovereignty, name this city so that the church there would be “the church in Philadelphia,” and not “the church in Agape?” In other words, why is this church called “the church of brotherly love,” rather than, “the church of divine love?” (That’s what the Greek words mean, respectively.) We might expect that, since the divine love is so much richer and higher than brotherly love, it should be the church in Agape that fulfills the Lord’s desire, not the church in Philadelphia.But in fact, in our experience, the divine love can only grow and develop within us in the environment of brotherly love (2 Peter 1:7). It is because the church in Philadelphia provides the environment for us to love the brothers and sacrifice ourselves for their sake, so that we enter into the experience of the divine love, that this church fulfills the Lord’s desire.
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RESOURCES
Books
Watchman NeeThe Orthodoxy of the Church
E.H. BroadbentThe Pilgrim Church
Bible VersesSee  Episode #92: “The Seven Churches (8): Why “Philadelphia”?
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RecordingRecorded in Chicago, Illinois on Tuesday, 28 May 2024

The Seven Churches (7): Lessons from Sardis

The Lord’s word to the seven churches in Revelation 2-3 is a truly remarkable prophecy of the seven stages the professing church would pass through before the Lord’s return. Understanding this prophecy will ground us much more firmly in our following of the Lord.But, we can also view this prophecy in terms of the lessons it provides regarding our own spiritual experience, and that is what we focus on in this episode. The Lord’s word to Sardis, together with the negative aspect of Protestant history, help us to see how we should view the Protestant denominations; how we should stand with the Lord for His kingdom on the earth; our need to avoid useless contentions of words (1 Tim. 6:4-5, 2 Tim. 2:14); and the crucial importance of always watching for the Lord’s return.
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RESOURCES
Previous Episodes
Episode #90: “The Seven Churches (6): Sardis, the Reformed but Dead Church”Episode #74: “Out of Egypt” (3)
Books
Watchman NeeThe Orthodoxy of the Church
E.H. BroadbentThe Pilgrim Church
Bible VersesSee  Episode #91: “The Seven Churches (7): Lessons from Sardis”
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RecordingRecorded in Chicago, Illinois on Monday, 13 May 2024

The Seven Churches (6): Sardis, the Reformed but Dead Church

Understanding the Lord’s word to the seven churches in Revelation 2-3 will greatly help us to see where we need to be in terms of our own church fellowship. So, in this edition of the podcast we come to His word to the church in Sardis, which is found in Revelation 3:1-6.Just as during His earthly ministry, the word the Lord speaks to the seven churches is not at all political; rather, He gives a very strong, direct, and frank word of judgment to deal with so many of the negative and harmful things that had come in among the churches. And yet, at the same time, it is a word of love, for as the Lord says in Revelation 3:19,“As many as I love, I rebuke and discipline.”As we saw in the previous episode, the Lord would not even speak directly to Thyatira, which signifies, prophetically, the pagan, apostate, Roman Catholic church; He would only speak to the remnant of His people there.When we come to Sardis, however, which signifies the Protestant church of the Reformation, we see that, on the one hand, He does speak directly to this church. But, on the other hand, the Lord has nothing good to say about it; He only appreciates a “few” there who have not defiled their garments. To the church itself the Lord says, very simply, “You are dead!” (Rev. 3:1).Considering such a sober word will help us to realize that, while Sardis was indeed a real improvement over Thyatira, it still falls far short of the Lord’s desire. Thus, we still need to go on until we arrive at the church in Philadelphia.
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RESOURCES
Books
Watchman NeeThe Orthodoxy of the Church
E.H. BroadbentThe Pilgrim Church
Bible VersesSee  Episode #90: “The Seven Churches (6): Sardis, the Reformed but Dead Church”
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RecordingRecorded in Chicago, Illinois on Thursday, 9 May 2024

The Seven Churches (5): "Thyatira," or, Seeing the Roman Catholic Church for What It Truly Is

As the followers of Christ, it is important for us to not only love what the Lord loves, but also to hate what the Lord hates; otherwise, it indicates that our love for the Lord may not be so genuine, or at least, not so enduring.So, in this episode of the podcast we consider the Lord’s word to the church in Thyatira in Revelation 2:18-29. To this church the Lord says that He has “the eyes like a flame of fire,” because in His word here He burns away all its false, outward appearance to expose this church for what it truly is.In brief, Thyatira prefigures the Roman Catholic church; the Lord’s word here corresponds to His Parable of the Tares in Matthew 13:33, and also to the vision of the Great Harlot of Revelation 17.All of these passages make it very clear that the Lord considers the Roman Catholic church to abomination. Far from being the one true church, as it so strongly claims for itself, it is the continuation of the pagan system of worship found in ancient Rome, which in turn was a continuation of so much of the paganism of the ancient Middle East.While this is a very negative topic, if we see the real nature of the Roman church, it will be a great protection to us, to keep us from being deceived by that evil religious system as we seek to follow Christ today. We will also appreciate much more fully the Lord’s desire to have the one true church, which is composed of all the genuine believers in Christ, as His spotless bride.
Length: 1 Hour
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RESOURCES
Previous EpisodesThe Seven Churches (4): Thyatira, the Apostate, Pagan, Roman Catholic Church
WebsitesWikipedia: The Pontifex Maximus
Wikipedia: Pope Damascus
Bible VersesSee  The Seven Churches (5): Seeing Thyatira, the Roman Catholic Church, for What It Truly Is”
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RecordingRecorded in Chicago, Illinois on Wednesday, 1 May 2024

The Seven Churches (4): Thyatira: The Apostate, Pagan, Roman Catholic Church

As we study the prophecy of the seven churches in Revelation 2-3, which shows us the seven stages of the history of the church, we will gain a clear view of where we should seek to be in terms of our church fellowship, namely, in the fellowship of the church in Philadelphia.In this episode we consider the fourth of these churches, the church in Thyatira. This signifies the apostate, pagan, Roman Catholic church, beginning from the last part of the sixth century and remaining until the Lord’s return. This is the “Jezebel” of Revelation 2:20 and also the “Great Harlot” seen later in the book of Revelation, in chapter 17. This stage of the church is also depicted in the Parable of the Leaven in Matthew 13:33.While this is a very negative topic, if we see the real nature of the Roman church, it will be a great protection to us, to keep us from being deceived by that evil religious system as we seek to follow Christ today. We will also appreciate much more fully the Lord’s desire to have the one true church, which is composed of all the genuine believers in Christ, as His spotless bride.
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===========SUMMARY
Seeing the Roman Catholic church for what it really is will be a protection to us, keeping us from being deceived by it as we follow Christ today
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RESOURCES
Books
Watchman NeeThe Orthodoxy of the Church
E.H. BroadbentThe Pilgrim Church
Bible VersesSee Episode #88: “The Seven Churches (4): Thyatira: The Apostate, Pagan, Roman Church”
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RECORDINGRecorded in Chicago, Illinois on Wednesday, 24 April 2024

The Seven Churches (3): Pergamos, the Worldly Church

The more you study the prophecy of the seven churches in Revelation 2-3, the more you have to be convinced that only God Himself could have written this book; only He could have so accurately foreseen the history of the professing church, as it is depicted in this prophecy, from the end of the first century all the way until the Lord’s return.Moreover, having a clear view of the prophetic history of these churches will help us see where we need to be in terms of our church fellowship, namely, in the fellowship of the church in Philadelphia.In this episode we consider the third of these churches, Pergamos. This church signifies the church from the fourth through the sixth centuries, that is, the church as it was turning away from Christ and being corrupted by the world. This stage of the church is also depicted in the Parable of the Tares in Matthew 13:24-30.
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RESOURCES
WebsiteChicagoMeeting.org
Books
Watchman NeeThe Orthodoxy of the Church
E.H. BroadbentThe Pilgrim Church
OnlineDarby on Matthew 24
Previous EpisodesEpisode #35: “The End of Amillennialism” (1)
Bible VersesSee Episode #87: “The Seven Churches (3): Pergamos, the Worldly Church”
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RecordingRecorded in Chicago, Illinois on Wednesday, 17 April 2024

The Seven Churches (2): Ephesus & Smyrna, the Early Church & the Suffering Church

In Revelation 2-3 the Lord first deals with the seven churches, which show us prophetically the history of the entire church age, before going on in the remaining chapters of Revelation to judge the world and Satan. This is in keeping with the principle the Apostle Peter gives us, that “judgment begins with the house of God” (1 Pet. 4:17).On the one hand, before God the churches are golden lampstands, shining out God’s testimony, and we really need to appreciate them in this way. But even so, on the other hand, they exist practically on the earth according to their actual condition, and the Lord judges them on that basis in chapters 2-3 of the book of Revelation.In this episode of the podcast, we consider the first two of these churches, Ephesus & Smyrna. These represent, respectively, the church at the end of the first century and the suffering church of the 2nd and 3rd centuries.
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OUR WEBSITETheChristianFaith.org
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RESOURCES
OnlineDarby on Acts 20
Books
Watchman NeeThe Orthodoxy of the Church
E.H. BroadbentThe Pilgrim Church
Previous EpisodesEpisode #63: “Could We Be Disciplined When We See the Lord?” (1)
Bible VersesSee Episode #86: “The Seven Churches (2): Ephesus & Smyrna, the Early Church”
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RecordingRecorded in Chicago, Illinois on Wednesday, 10 April 2024

The Seven Churches (1)

This episode begins with a clip of some recent sharing by Titus Chu, a brother who has helped me a great deal in my walk the Lord. He answers the question, “What is the need of the churches today?,” saying, very directly, that the need is for brothers and sisters to be raised up by the Lord to serve Him with various ministries; only when there are such ones among us can the churches go on in a good way.We then begin a study of the Lord’s word to the seven churches in Revelation 2-3, which is a remarkable prophecy of the public history of the church, and of the seven stages it would go through before the Lord returns. If we have a clear view of this prophecy, it will greatly help us to see where we can find the New Testament fellowship of the Body of Christ today.
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RESOURCES
Bible VersesSee Episode #85: “The Seven Churches (1): The New Testament Fellowship”
BooksAndrew Murry, Absolute Surrender
Previous EpisodesEpisode #84: “The Need for Ministry” (4) & “The New Testament Fellowship” (1)
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Recording
Recorded in Chicago, Illinois on Thursday, 28 March 2024

Christ in You: The Need for Ministry (4) & the New Testament Fellowship (1)

This episode begins by highlighting the ministries of three servants of the Lord who helped the saints enter into the experience of Christ as their life, and recommending their books to the saints: T. Austin Sparks, Mary McDonough, and Andrew Murray. I then go on to encourage readers to study the writings of J.N. Darby, who focused more on the objective aspect of the truth, and also the 1917 edition of the Scofield Study Bible.Finally, I recommend the ministry of Brother Titus Chu, which has been a great help to me personally. He was a co-worker of Witness Lee, and currently serves the Lord in the Great Lakes area of the United States and Canada, and oversees as well.The last segment begins to consider the question of just what is, and what is not, the New Testament Fellowship of the believers in Christ.
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BOOKS RECOMMENDED IN THIS EPISODE
For the list of books referred to in this episode, please see its page on our website:Episode #84: “Christ In You: The Need for Ministry” (4) & "The New Testament Fellowship" (1)
OTHER RESOURCES
A Bible Chart, based on Mary McDonough’s “3 Circle” diagramsA Chart of God’s Full Salvation
VideoHow I Found the New Testament Fellowship
Previous Episodes of the PodcastEpisode #80: The Bible in One VerseEpisode #82: “Christ In You: The Need for Ministry” (2) Episode #83: Christ In You: The Need for Ministry (3)
BIBLE VERSES REFERENCED IN THIS EPISODESee Episode #84: “Christ In You: The Need for Ministry” (4) & "The New Testament Fellowship" (1)
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Recorded in Chicago, Illinois on the Lord’s Day Evening, 24 March 2024