Join us in this insightful episode as we explore the profound themes of righteous living and dying, starting with the lessons from both the Old and New Testaments. At the heart of our discussion is a contemplation of the ultimate sacrifice made by Jesus Christ and the courageous deaths of early Christians like Stephen and James. Their stories are a testament to the enduring power of faith in life’s final moments. We delve into the significance of dying the ‘death of the righteous’, a concept that echoes throughout Christianity and offers a guiding light for believers. This episode not
00:00:00 Introduction to Righteous Living and Dying
Today, from the International Gospel Hour, once again, the Are You Listening Again series will continue. We’re going to look at the blessing of righteous living and, friends, righteous dying. The International Gospel Hour begins right now.
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Hi, this is Jay Webb for International Gospel Hour. For 90 years, churches of Christ have proclaimed God’s Word through International Gospel Hour. You are about to listen to another Bible-based lesson with Jeff Archie of International Gospel Hour, starting now.
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I am bound for the promised land.
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ladies and gentlemen it is a joy to welcome you to our program today and we are delighted you have chosen to listen to our remarks on this day you do us great honor by allowing us to come where you are by radio podcast or online in order that together we might meditate upon the word of the lord This series of lessons considers a principle that occurs in Numbers 23.10 that says, Let me die the death of the righteous, and let my last end be like his. Thus far in our study we have taken notice of how the righteous died in the Old Testament. Now we turn our attention to those who died in the realm of the righteous within the New Testament. There is no better example to begin. our study of New Testament deaths, in righteousness than with, rather, our blessed Lord Jesus Christ. He died in a prayerful attitude and with the full assurance that the great sacrifice for humanity’s sins had been made. As Jesus breathed His last precious breath, He knew the Father’s will stood ably accomplished on the brow of cruel Calvary. Thereof the seven-word statements from the cross were in the form of a prayer or a petition addressed to His Father above. Luke, the beloved physician, said in Luke 23, 34, Father, forgive them, for they know not what they do. In Luke 23, 46, we read where the dying Redeemer said, Father, into thy hands I commend my spirit. It is finished, is the trio of words expressed in John 19, 30. Jesus, oh friends, he lived majestically and died triumphantly. He showed his people how to live. He showed them how to die with courage and conviction. His first recorded statement in the New Testament, while he tabernacled in human flesh, was in reference to his intent to accomplish the Father’s will. In his dying moments he triumphantly declared that the Father’s work which he came to do stood completed. What a wonderful Savior we have the privilege of serving. Dear listener, are you a Christian? Are you marching under the banners of such a marvelous person? If not, why not? Stephen, he died in the line of duty as the first Christian martyr. Up until this time, none of the disciples really knew just how the newly begun religion of Christianity would undergird them in the moment of death. It was a religion which they had already proven conclusively that people can live by each day and which would reinforce them in periods of persecution. But was it a religion that would undergird successfully each person’s walk through the veil of death, and especially the death of Christian martyr? Stephen first met this unanswered query and left a marvelous answer of courage in death. He fell asleep in Jesus with a two-fold petition upon his lips, which were soon to be sealed with the kiss of death. But let’s give some of the background near the end of Acts 7. Beginning with the heavenly vision that Stephen witnessed, Luke said, But he, being full of the Holy Spirit, looked up steadfastly into heaven and saw the glory of God in Jesus standing on the right hand of God, and said, behold, I see the heavens opened, and the Son of Man standing on the right hand of God. But they cried out with a loud voice, and stopped their ears, and rushed upon him with one accord, and they cast him out of the city, and stoned him. And the witnesses laid down their garments at the feet of a young man named Saul. And they stoned Stephen, calling upon the Lord, and saying, Lord Jesus, receive my spirit. And he kneeled down and cried with a loud voice, Lord, lay not this sin to their charge. And when he had said this, he fell asleep. Acts 7, 55-60 Stephen died in the position of prayer, the framework of faith, the realm of righteousness, and amidst the courage of his convictions. James, the apostle and brother of John, died at the cruel hands of Herod Agrippa I., He had some ten years of kingdom service to his spiritual credit at the time he was slain for the Savior. He was the first apostle to die for his faith. It is true that Judas Iscariot died many years earlier, but the apostate of treason and treachery did not die for his faith in Jesus the Christ or as a martyr for the Messiah. Matthew records the suicide of Judas Iscariot in Matthew 27, 3-10. We have no dying words from James. Luke tersely describes this incident in eleven words as translated in our English Bible. Only seven words were employed in the Greek text. The English rendering is, And he killed James the brother of John with the sword. James had now drunk the cup and been immersed in the fullness of sufferings that Jesus predicted for him and John in the words of Mark 10, 38-39. But Jesus said unto them, You know not what you ask. Are you able to drink the cup that I drink, or to be baptized with the baptism that I am baptized with? And they said unto him, We are able. And Jesus said unto them, The cup that I drink you shall drink, and with the baptism that I am baptized withal shall you be baptized. James drank that cup of persecution and received that immersion of suffering like the real Christian hero that he was. He did not flinch from the face of the foe. There was no recanting to save his own skin. Satan once said, Skin for skin, yes, all that a man hath he will give for his life. Job 2 verse 4 The archenemy of humanity was proved wrong in the Old Testament by Job’s continued patience in the presence of pain, suffering, and loss, both to his family and his own person. James and a distinguished host of millions of martyrs who followed him upon the sacrificial block of Christian courage and conviction have proved Satan decisively wrong in innumerable amount of times during the Christian dispensation. My friends, I ask in all seriousness, are you listening? Were death to strike you this very day, would you die the death of the righteous or the death of the unrighteous? In order to die the death of the righteous, you must die as a Christian. And in order to die as a Christian, you must have obeyed the gospel of Jesus Christ. That gospel demands that you hear the word because hearing produces the kind of faith that will move you to gospel obedience, Romans 10, 17. Then you must believe that Jesus Christ is the Son of God, Hebrews 11, 6. Jehovah God now commands all men everywhere to repent, Acts 2, verse 38. Confession of Jesus as the Christ, the Son of the living God, must be made, Matthew 10, 32, and Acts 8, 37. Upon that confession one must be immersed into the name of the Father, the Son, and the Holy Spirit. Matthew 28, 18-20 and Mark 16, 15-16 and this is how you become a Christian. Then live faithfully and you can one day close your eyes in the sleep of the righteous dead and awake to everlasting life on judgment’s great day. Beloved, that is what the real mission of life is all about. Preparation for death and eternity. When one is prepared to die, then and only then is he prepared to live in the truest sense of that term. Friends, again, we ask the question, are you a Christian? Would you die the death of the righteous if you left this life today? In our studies, we know that we prompt individuals to think about these things of which we have discussed and to look upon these things that are of vital importance. And so we ask you, dear friend, can we be of further help to you in your studies of the Word of God? I’m going to defer to our announcer, Jay Webb. He will share with you our free Bible study course available by mail that we hope will help you in your study of these things that we have discussed. Here is our J-Web.
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Our well-received Bible study course by mail is available to everyone absolutely free. Would you like to try it? All you do is call us toll-free at 855-444-6988 and leave your name, address, and just say, Home Study. That’s it. That’s all you have to do. You may also go to our website at internationalgospelhour.com. Click on the Contact tab and leave us the same information, name, address, and type Home Study in the message box. At your own pace, you can study the Bible in your own home. Again, it’s free. Give it a try. And it’s from your friends here at International Gospel Hour.
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Friends, again, we have shared with you a discussion of Let Me Die the Death of the Righteous as part of what we refer to as Are You Listening Again series. Brother V.E. Howard was known as saying, Are you listening? And as our speaker for 60 years, people knew Brother Howard many times from those three words. From 1974 to 1986, Brother Howard had the services of Brother Robert R. Taylor, the longtime evangelist for the Ripley, Tennessee Church of Christ. Brother Taylor wrote much material for Brother Howard during those years, and we have secured a great number of these lessons from Brother Taylor. These are lessons that are treasures, and we will use them from time to time, and we simply call it, Are You Listening? Again. This material has not been presented in over 40 years, but the truths therein are still just as vital and as real today. Both Brother Howard and Brother Taylor have gone the way of the living, They’ve died the death of the righteous, but their message continues strong. And we are blessed to offer them here in our studies through International Gospel Hour. Friends, I want to pause here and I want you to hear about a way you can follow us, well, in social media. Here is our J-Web once again.
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You can find International Gospel Hour on X, formerly known as Twitter. Just search Our Gospel. That’s Our, H-O-U-R, underscore, Gospel. Feel free to retweet or repost our content. International Gospel Hour is on X, formerly Twitter, at Our, underscore, Gospel. That’s H-O-U-R, underscore, Gospel. Thanks for following.
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And friends, we hope you will follow us on social media and also inquire for our free Bible study course by mail. We are delighted to offer these studies as part of our work at International Gospel Hour. We’re very excited to present the series that we are doing concerning dying the death of the righteous and to study the Bible to look at those individuals in Old and New Testament. And we will continue these thoughts at another time. We’re delighted that you’ve joined us, and please let us know where you’re listening to our broadcast from. If you’ll call us at 855-444-6988 and just simply say, I listen to your broadcast on or I listen at, we’d love to hear from you. We’ll continue these studies at another time, but thank you for joining me today on the International Gospel Hour. I’m Jeff Archie, and friends, keep listening.
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Thank you for listening to our broadcast today. To God goes all the glory, and we hope that our study today will draw you closer to His Word to walk in His way. To listen to it again, or our other broadcasts, please visit our website at internationalgospelhour.com.
