There’s an old saying: “It’s not whether you win or lose, it’s how you play the game.” That may be true in one sense, but when we do things properly—God is faithful to reward us. There are consequences [positive or negative] for what is done. That is never truer than in the case of Jesus Christ, God’s only-begotten Son, and his archenemy, Lucifer.
We’ve recently published some books to help people better understand the Bible. They are the structures of the scriptures: the big picture, a middle view, and a detailed look at each verse. This series on Biblical structure helps readers build a scope of God’s Word.
Recently my oldest sister sent me some morning glory seeds in the mail. I opened the letter, took out the seeds and stuck them in the ground. Now I have a beautiful vine that blossoms each morning with deep violet flowers. I do need to water them occasionally, but God designed all the work to be done by the seed itself. It’s the same with the gospel. We just sow it, and God gives the increase.
God our Creator and FatherIn the beginning, moved His hand
And built the world His love had planned,
A living, resting place for man,
Creator God and Father.
Then on the sixth and final day,
With earth and heavens fully laid,
From red earth forming Adam’s race,
Created in His image.
Not only flesh and bone and breath,
But with His spirit’s perfect rest,
Free from pain and sin and death,
Created thus to know Him.
Yet Satan tricked this primal pair,
With pride and greed, he set the snare,
Bringing loss and great despair,
Creation groaned in sadness.
But God’s first promise soon He said,
The woman’s seed, would crush his head,
A suffering savior, though made dead,
Creation’s hope arisen.
O Praise the Lord, our God and King,
To the Creator, voices ring,
He gave His Son, our life to bring,
Creator, now our Father.
From ages past, God’s holy ones,
Spoke of all, the Lord had done,
And how He would, send forth His Son,
His Word would be accomplished.
Noah, Moses, Jesse’s son,
Isaiah, Micah—every one,
Looked to the day, Messiah comes,
The Word made flesh to save us.
An angel told, a humble maid,
That she’d conceive, and bear by grace,
The one for whom, the prophets prayed,
Fulfilling His Word for us.
“God is Spirit,” Jesus told
A woman at the well of old,
As he fulfilled the ancient scrolls,
The living Word among us.
Each jot and tittle, ever true,
God-breathed and faithful, makes us new,
Born of His spirit, me and you.
The Word of Life—salvation.
What price could pay, the guilt of sin?
Could ever man, be whole again?
A second Adam, victory win?
God never will forsake us.
Cast from the garden’s, precious home,
Where evil spirits, haunt and roam,
Adam’s sons, seemed all alone,
But God would not forsake them.
The flood’s destruction, came at last,
When Noah stood, on God’s Word fast,
From his son, Shem, would come to pass,
The promise of a Savior.
Bearing all our sin and strife,
Never time, for home or wife,
Jesus lived a perfect life,
On the cross to save us.
What happened, that “accepted year,”
When Jesus’ voice, rang true and clear?
He overcame sin, death, and fear.
Our risen Lord redeems us.
One reason there is division and misunderstanding in the church is that some Bible readers do not understand scope. God calls Himself the Holy Spirit, and He spoke by His spirit that He gave to the prophets so they could write the scriptures (II Peter 1:20,21). This included the Apostle Paul (II Peter 3:15,16). If, over thousands of years, our Father gave His Word to people to make up the Bible, then it all must agree within itself. And it does.
II Timothy 4:3,4 [Moffatt Translation]:
For the time will come when people decline to be taught sound doctrine, they will accumulate teachers to suit themselves and tickle their own fancies, they will give up listening to the Truth and turn to myths.
The second life lesson I’ve learned is instrumentally woven in with humility (Life Lesson #1)—that I must prove everything by the Word of God. The apostle Paul emphasized to the Thessalonians, “Prove all things. Hold fast to the good” (I Thessalonians 5:21).
Happy New Year! The attached PDF file is the result of more than 15 years of study and examination. My goal and desire is that it will serve you as a helpful tool in studying the New Testament. It shows one way that God emphasizes certain truths, and includes many familiar scripture verses regarding fundamental Biblical truths. Enjoy!
Life has been full of challenging pressures, learning adventures, and great times with my heavenly Father. I love how the challenges and difficulties can bring me one of two ways. Either I end up doing things my way, or I get into the Word and do it God’s way.
In Part 1, we saw that our eyes are to be flooded with God’s spiritual light, just as a mighty laser can focus photons into a brilliant stream of power and energy. We also learned that humility opens our eyes to see what the Father has for us to learn. And we saw how to keep His light in our hearts.