Dan Lee
1 Timothy 1:8-11, The Blessings of God's Law

The law is good. With this declaration of truth, Scripture shows us that God’s law was meant to bless us. But how does the law do this? At least in three ways as they emerge from this text: 1) protection from evil of the fallen world, 2) conviction for sin which leads us to salvation, and 3) sanctification of the believer unto their conformity to Christ. The law was designed to lead us to the Savior to save us and then to train us that we may be like Him in His love for God and love for man.

Dan Lee
1 Timothy 1:1-7, Focused and Undistracted

The burden that drove Paul to write First Timothy was the distractions that could steer the church away from God’s purpose for her, namely, the administration of God which is by faith, the love that comes from a pure heart, a good conscience, and a sincere faith. Paul opens his letter with a strong appeal to his authority to ensure that Timothy understood the gravity of the issues at hand and that the church would receive Timothy’s leadership in this matter. In this passage, we find four strong encouragements to guide us away from the thousand termites that can eat away at our own walk with the Lord and the maturation of God’s church: 1) avoid speculative ideas, 2) understand our stewardship, 3) pursue godliness, and 4) exude holy love.

Dan Lee
Deut. 30:11-14, Bibliology: The Clarity of ...

As one preacher once put it: “The main things in Scripture are the plain things, and the plain things in Scripture are the main things.” This is indeed Scripture’s claim about itself, that the word of God is understandable in its gospel call to the free gift of salvation through faith in Christ and repentance from sin. But this is a very nuanced doctrine. Four such nuances are explored here: progress, study, Spirit, and limitation. May we all continually grow in the grace and knowledge of our Lord and Savior Jesus Christ (2 Pet. 3:18).

Dan Lee
2 Tim. 3:14-4:5, Bibliology: The Sufficiency of ...

Scripture is sufficient for all the matters about which it speaks. This means the Bible is all we need to do all that God desires for us to do, i.e., what we must believe and how we are to live before God. No other source of special revelation for faith and life is needed in addition to the Bible. Whether it is for salvation, personal godliness, or the life and ministry of the church, Scripture is what God has chosen to give us and it is enough. Were we to ask what books make up these sufficient Scriptures, we heartily answer, the Old Testament Jesus affirmed and the New Testament Jesus authorized, these 39 and 27 books of the two testaments are the word of God, and no more.

Dan Lee
1 Cor. 15:20-26, 50-57, Our Victory in Christ

No man is a match for death and its sting, because we all descend from Adam. But God has provided another man, “the last Adam” who unlike the first gives life (v45), not takes away life. Indeed, all who are “Christ’s” will like Him be raised from the dead when He comes (v23). Christ is the firstfruits, and we the harvest after Him (v20). All who are one with Christ by faith share in His victory over death. This victory culminates when death itself is destroyed and the imperishable kingdom of God commences. It is for that eternal dwelling place that the Lord will fit us at glorification.

John 10:11-18, Jesus our Self-Sacrificing Shepherd

Jesus is our self-sacrificing shepherd whose motive for self-sacrifice is care and friendship toward His people and the commission He received from the Father. And according to that command of God, Jesus lays down His life (crucifixion) for the sheep so that He may take it up again (resurrection). He is our living Savior who is able to impart life and lead His people as their living and loyal shepherd. He is risen, He is risen indeed!

John 9:39-41, Spiritual Blindness

In the first half of this sermon, Pastor Dan exhorts us to be true worshippers. What are we to do if our hearts are cold and apathetic? We listen to the wisdom of Christ who taught us that we work on our hearts by working on our actions. In John 9:39, we see that Christ came into the world to bring a clarifying binary separation between two clear cut spiritual categories: the blind vs. the sighted, the worshipper of Christ vs. the non-worshipper, the one who trusts Christ vs. the one who distrusts Christ. The Lord also came to bring about a binary effect as well: the opening of spiritual eyes and the blinding of spiritual eyes.

John 9:26-38, Jesus is the Holy God

Jesus is the holy God. As the interrogation of the blind man continues, Jesus’ innocence is found to be unassailable and thus the healed man defends His holy character. Jesus is no sinner. As the one whose healing has been enabled by the power of God (not Satan or his demonic spirits), as the man whose prayers are answered, Jesus is rightly perceived as the holy man of God who has been sent from God. In this study, we give attention to the holy character of Jesus in this two part series on Jesus as the holy God.