Author: hillturnfs

I’ve blogged about Proverbs before. God loves redundancy and so do I. One of the ways we lock something into our memory is through repetition. I prefer to think of repetition as affirmations and we can’t do that too much. You are what you think about. Proverbs was written by Solomon, the wisest man who ever lived. It’s fitting that God chose Solomon to share the wisdom of God with us. Proverbs is like found gold and we would be remiss if we failed to advantage of it.

PROVERBS – KEY IDEAS:

4. God is Sovereign. God knows all, sees all, and in his perfect will directs our steps.

5. Strive for integrity and righteousness by emulating Christ.

6. Be humble, act justly and follow God’s commandments.

7. Avoid doing what God hates to avoid punishment. Love what God loves.

DO THIS:

1. Witness for Christ
2. Study God’s Word
3. Never listen to fools
4. Obey God
5. Live by faith and not by sight
6. Do right by everyone
7. Give to the needy
8. Guard your tongue
9. Pick a good Christian wife
10. Speak only good and not evil
11. Love God
12. Act justly
13. Stand by friends
14. Accept wise counsel
15. Love one another
16. Respect parents
17. Discipline children

AVIOD THIS:

1. Pride
2. Miserly people
3. Bad people
4. Evil
5. Sin
6. Adultery
7. Fornication
8. Liars
9. Deceitful people

The book of Proverbs is known as the Bible’s wisdom literature for good reason. Proverbs is my favorite book of the Bible after the gospels. The authority of every verse in Proverbs jumps out at you and the obvious truth and wisdom being shared with us are unmistakably from the mind and finger of Almighty God. There are 31 chapters in the book of Proverbs and I’ve said before we should read one chapter a day to incorporate the wisdom of God into our daily lives. What I’ve done is to summarize Proverbs into twelve key ideas and seven short lists by category so I can review the wisdom contained in Proverbs whenever I want. If I don’t have the time to read a chapter of Proverbs every day I can take five minutes and read my summary of Proverbs to keep God’s wisdom on my mind. Think of it as Cliff Notes for Proverbs.

PROVERBS – KEY IDEAS:

1. Fear of the Lord is the beginning of wisdom. Accept God’s gift of salvation through faith in his Son Jesus Christ our Lord.

2. Seek the Lord and you will find him. Ask for God’s Holy Spirit to be active in your life and he will.

3. Knowledge comes from studying God’s Word. Understanding comes from meditating on God’s word. Wisdom comes from applying God’s Word.

BE THIS:

1. Humble
2. Righteous
3. Discrete
4. Prudent

GOD LOVES THIS:

1. A good worker
2. A generous giver

GOD HATES THIS:

1. A fool
2. Laziness

You have to realize one of the reasons God has given us his Word is because it already contains 95% of his will for our lives. One of the reasons we are commanded to study God’s Word is so we can discover his purpose for our lives as revealed in Scripture. God will fill in the missing details of his plan for our lives when we come to him in prayer. You first have to obey God and read the Bible before he will reveal anything to you.

Bible study questions continued:

4. Is there a promise for me to claim?

Some promises of God are unconditional and believers receive them automatically like in Hebrews 13:5 – “Never will I leave you; never will I forsake you.” Other promises from God are conditional and are based on some action taken on our part. We have to be willing to claim these promises by doing what God requires of us. For an example, lets look at Psalm 37:4 – “Delight yourself in the LORD and he will give you the desires of your heart.” If you aren’t sure exactly how to claim a promise from God ask him in prayer and it will be revealed to you.

5. What is a particular passage of the Bible teaching you about God or about Jesus Christ?

The entire Bible is focused on revealing the coming of Jesus Christ to redeem a fallen world. The goal of Christian life is growing in our personal knowledge of Jesus Christ. By reading and studying God’s Word we get to know Jesus better and better.

6. Is there a difficulty here for me to explore?

God reveals to us what he wants us to know and what we need to know. There will be things we don’t understand about the spiritual world and may never know this side of heaven. Ask questions of God but don’t let what you don’t know or understand be a stumbling block. A sovereign God has us in his hands and works all things to our benefit.

7. Is there something in this passage I should pray about today?

As you meditate on your daily Bible reading write down any questions you have for God that you can incorporate into your prayer life. Keep your prayers fresh with new ideas and information you want to discuss with God. God knows everything so just keep praying for the answer. Be sure to wait on God and listen for the still small voice that is God.

Two-way communication between us and God is critical to our spiritual life. Prayer is us talking to God and reading the Bible is God talking to us. We need both in equal measure. The more consistent we are in our communication with God the more intimate our relationship becomes. Any breakdown between us and God is on our part because God is always ready for us to deepen our relationship with him. When we consistently talk with God, and are disciplined in our approach, God will reveal his Word to us along with his plan for our lives. Set aside at least 15 minutes a day for quality face time with God and more time if you can spare it. There’s no better use of your time than talking to God. Read the entire Bible one chapter a day starting with the New Testament book of Matthew. As you read your Bible meditate on God’s Word. Ask God to speak to your heart through a revelation of the Holy Spirit. Be patient. Give God time to answer any questions you have. I’m going to list the seven questions you need to ponder as you read your Bible every day.

1. Is there an example for me to follow?

God’s Word is truth. All Bible reading is done to discover God’s will as it pertains to our lives. Pray for God to reveal his will for your life in Scripture before you read your Bible and then meditate on what you have read afterwards. God won’t disappoint you.

2. Is there a sin for me to avoid?

This appears to be obvious but often we can’t see the sin in our lives clearly. We all sin. The trick is to identify those hidden sins that we may not be aware of, expose them to the light, evaluate their root cause and ask God’s help to eliminate them.

3. Is there a command for me to obey?

There are over 200 direct commands that God gives to believers in the Bible. Most chapters of the Bible will probably have at least one command from God. The goal of every Christian is to obey all of God’s commands so we need to watch for and pay particular attention to those commands from God when we come across them. We will be judged on how well we obey God. God says in Scripture those who love me will obey my commands.

There are a number of ways to witness for Christ and there are hundreds of verses of Scripture that have helped people to accept Christ as their Savior. However, the most used paths have been narrowed to about five. I’ve previously mentioned I favor what is known as the “Roman road” where I used almost exclusively verses from Pauls’ epistle to the Romans to lead a person to Christ in a logical progression. This is by far the most popular way to witness to unbelievers because it’s easy to see the step by step progression to a logical conclusion. I start with Romans 3:23 (all have sinned), then Romans 6:23 (sins must be paid for), on to Romans 5:8 (Jesus paid our sin debt), and finally Romans 10:9 (acceptance of God’s gift of eternal life through faith in Jesus as Lord and Savior). Although it’s not necessary, I like to throw in John 3:16 (God loves you) at the beginning because I believe once people believe someone cares about them they’re more likely to listen.

As a witness for Christ you have to decide what works best for you but you should at least be aware of other paths to reach the unbeliever. Our forefathers were much more knowledgeable about the Bible than we are today. We currently live in a biblically illiterate society and the problem is getting worse. We need to keep the foundational truths of the gospel fairly simple at first as we witness to unbelievers. You can lay out broad general guidelines that are easy to understand. Man was separated from God, the reason for the separation was our sin, Jesus came as the peacemaker to eliminate the cause of our separation (sin) and all we have to do is accept by faith the work of Jesus on the cross in our behalf. Everything else is just details.

In addition to the “Roman road” witness protocol we have what I call “John’s highway” because it uses mostly verses from the gospel of John. John stresses the divinity of Jesus and our personal relationship to Him. You can highlight John 3:16, John 6:35, John 14:6, John 8:12, and use Matthew 11:28 to ask for a decision to accept Christ as Lord and Savior. We witness using the “four steps to God” which are 1. God’s love and holiness (1 John 1:5, Psalm 100:3). 2. Man’s fallen state (James 2:10, Psalm 14:2-3). 3. Jesus’ work of redemption (Romans 5:6-8). Man can repent, believe and receive God’s grace unto salvation (Acts 17:30, John 1:12).

Some witness using the “three steps to restored fellowship” 1. The problem – separation from God (Isaiah 53:6, Romans 3:11-12). 2. The cause of the problem – sin (Mark 7:15). The solution to the problem – faith in Jesus as Lord and Savior (Romans 5:8, 1 Peter 2:24). We also have what I call “grace by faith” witnessing through a series of Scriptures that stress God’s love, mercy and grace toward us based on our faith in the redemptive work of Jesus on the cross. Review the following verses to highlight this path to salvation, Titus 3:5, Ephesians 2:8-9. Romans 5:8, Romans 3:28, and Romans 5:1.

On the first blog I concentrated on the attributes of God I thought were most important to understanding God’s salvation plan for mankind. On this blog I’ll focus on the more awe inspiring attributes of God. We can only scratch the surface of who God is by contemplating the attributes He has chosen to reveal to us. We’ll have all eternity to plumb the depths of God and even then we’ll never come close to knowing all there is to know about God.

8. Omnipotent – God is all-powerful. Scripture says nothing is impossible for the Lord.

9. Omnipresent – God is everywhere. God is a Spirit and is in every inch of his creation at the same time. I have a hard time wrapping my mind around this attribute of God.

10. Omniscient – God is all-knowing. God knows everything that has happened in the past, is happening now and what will happen in the future along with all possible outcomes that could have been. Just imagine the brain power it must take to keep up with this for every person who has ever lived.

11. Infinite – God has no limitations.

12. Eternal – God is not bound by time.

13. Self-sufficient – God has no needs not provided by himself.

14. Self-existent – God exists because he exists.

15. Immutable – God is constant, never changing.

16. Inscrutable – God is mysterious, inexplicable.

17. Incomprehensible – God is beyond understanding or comprehension.

18. Faithful – God is self-loyal and loyal to us.

19. Wise – God is wise, using infinite knowledge to the best end.

20. True – God’s divine nature is the definition of truth.

21. Light – God is the source and strength of all illumination.

Familiarity breeds contempt. It’s human nature. However, we must never become complacent with God. God is our Father in heaven and we’re his beloved children with 24/7 access to Him through prayer. He is still Almighty God and we must approach the throne of grace humbly and with fear. By fear I mean we are to always approach God with the awe, reverence and respect he deserves. One way to always be humble and fearful before God is to take time to meditate about God on a regular basis. I keep a list of the 21 attributes of God referenced in the Bible. Take time to reflect on a particular attribute of God. What evidence of this attribute of God can you see in creation? What evidence of it do you see in how God treated nations and individuals in the Bible? How has that particular attribute of God been reflected in your life? It’s impossible to meditate about God without seeing how small and unimportant we are in comparison to Father God. If that won’t make you humble nothing will. It’s impossible to meditate about God without getting a sense of God’s glory and majesty. If that won’t generate fear in your heart nothing will.

ATTRIBUTES OF GOD:

1. Holy – Absolute purity and goodness; God’s most prominent attribute. You can see why God cannot allow sin to enter heaven.

2. Love – Unselfish concern; seeking our highest good. I list love second because Scripture says God is love. God made us and dearly loves us.

3. Merciful – Grants forgiveness and salvation. God delights in showing mercy.

4. Righteous – This means the same as justice. This means God dispenses moral equity. You reap what you sow; you get what you deserve. No favoritism. No exceptions. This is why Jesus had to shed his blood on the cross. Man sowed sin and God, in his mercy and grace, reaped the consequence in our place to keep us out of hell while still being a righteous God.

5. Gracious – Unmerited favor. Because we have a giving God who abounds in love and mercy he dispenses grace abundantly without our asking and without us doing anything to deserve it.

6. Good. God is kind, cordial, benevolent, friendly, sympathetic and full of grace. This attribute tells us we have a friend in God and it makes me want to keep close to God for protection.

7. Sovereign – God is the absolute ruler of the universe and what he says goes. God is our King, our Lord, our Savior and our Master.

It’s normal for the unbeliever to initially see Jesus from their own perspective. In their world view a son comes after their father, is made by their father, and is always subordinate to their father. You have to shake up this paradigm and give them the perspective from the spiritual world. Jesus has always existed and so was not made by anyone. Jesus is divine just like the Father and is equal to the Father in every way. Jesus is subordinate to the Father within the Trinity only as it relates to office or function and then only by mutual consent. Think of it as a business partnership where the co-owners own equal shares of the business and by mutual agreement one becomes CEO and the other President of the company.

Once the unbeliever realizes the Jesus he’s dealing with is the one and only God of creation, the decision maker as far as the fate of his eternal soul, he can then give Jesus the awe, reverence and respect he deserves along with the glory Jesus deserves. Jesus is the Christ, the Anointed One, the Messiah and the Son of God. Christianity is Jesus. Christianity means “Christ’s men”. The Bible’s laser focus is on Jesus and his redemptive work on the cross which was the most important day in human history. Jesus died a terrible death on the cross for all men, past, present and future, and that includes each of us personally. Just think of the intense physical pain and suffering Jesus went through.

Think of the spiritual anguish Jesus went through taking on the sins of all of humanity and that includes our personal sins past, present and future. Imagine the anguish of having the wrath of God fall on you and then having to endure separation from God for the first time in your life. Think of the shame Jesus endured because of us. All these things Jesus did willingly for us because of his great love for us. Jesus’ redemptive work on the cross is complete. God’s half of the salvation plan for man is done. The other half of our salvation unto eternal life is up to us to complete. The path to our salvation runs through Jesus and only Jesus. For those who believe in Jesus Christ and by faith accept him as their Lord and Savior God will give to them eternal life. For those who repent and ask for the forgiveness of their sins God will be merciful and forgive you. Because of the shed blood of Jesus on the cross a gracious God will impute the righteousness of Christ Jesus onto all who believe on his name and give them eternal life in heaven as children of God.

John 3:16 – For God so loved the world that He gave His only begotten Son, that whoever believes in Him should not perish but have everlasting life.

John 1:14 – And the Word became flesh and dwelt among us…full of grace and truth.

John 1:3 – All things were made through Him, and without Him nothing was made that was made.

John 16:28 (Jesus speaking) – I came forth from the Father and have come into the world. Again, I leave the world and go to the Father.

John 8:32 – And you shall know the truth, and the truth shall make you free.

When discussing Jesus with unbelievers we can use the Bible to confirm the deity of Christ. If the unbeliever doesn’t believe the Bible is the inerrant Word of God start there. God is evident in the unity, wisdom and consistent message of the Bible. 40 writers over a span of 1500 years created God’s Word as they were led by the Holy Spirit. The Bible contains over 1000 prophecies, over 500 of which have been fulfilled and documented. God gives us prophecy to reveal Jesus to us and to prove he is God. The remaining prophecies will be fulfilled at their appointed time. Over 60 prophecies specific to Jesus have been fulfilled and verified as fact.

In my very early blogs I listed the 36 fulfilled prophecies of Jesus I thought were most important. Once we have established that the Bible is God’s Word we can go to the Scriptures and see that Jesus, the Son of God, is mentioned in virtually every book of the Bible. Jesus is the constant thread woven throughout the entire Bible. Without Jesus there would be no Bible. The Bible is God’s revelation to man of the coming of Jesus Christ to the earth to redeem fallen mankind. God wants us to know Jesus personally.

Matthew 1:22-23 – In the beginning was the Word, and the Word was with God, and the Word was God. And the Word became flesh and dwelt among us.

Matthew 26:28 (Jesus speaking) – For this is the blood of the new covenant, which is shed for many for the remission of sins.

Luke 19:10 (Jesus speaking) – For the Son of Man has come to seek and to save that which was lost.

Acts 4:12 – Salvation is found in no one else, for there is no other name under heaven given to men by which we must be saved.

The four gospels record the life of Jesus and his three and a half year ministry on earth. In the gospel of John the Apostle focuses primarily on the divinity of Jesus Christ. The following Scriptures containing the actual words of Jesus are meant to prove Jesus is God, who came into the world to die in our place as our only way to salvation and eternal life:

John 10:30 (Jesus speaking) – I and My Father are one.

John 14:10 (Jesus speaking) – He who has seen Me has seen the Father.

John 14:6 (Jesus speaking) – I am the way, the truth, and the life. No one comes to the Father except through Me.

John 11:25-26 (Jesus speaking) – I am the resurrection and the life. He who believes in Me, though he may die, he shall live. And whoever lives and believes in Me shall never die.

John 10:10 (Jesus speaking) – I have come that they may have life, and that they may have it more abundantly.

When witnessing for Christ you first must introduce unbelievers to Jesus. There is only one God, who exists in three persons, the Father, the Son and the Holy Spirit. The truth of the triune Godhead is a difficult concept, even for believers, but it’s clear from the Scriptures. Who is Jesus? First of all, he is fully God! All three persons of the Godhead are co-equal, co-eternal and co-divine, which means they are comprised of the same divine substance. All three persons of the Godhead have always existed in perfect fellowship and love for each other. Each person of the Godhead knows everything about each other and are always in perfect agreement. Where they differ is in function and position within the Godhead. One is not superior to the other. All three persons of the Godhead were involved in creation. According to Scripture it was Jesus who actually created us and the universe we live in. All are God!

The world God created was perfect but when Satan caused Adam to disobey God in the garden of Eden death and sin came into the world. It’s a spiritual law that the wages of sin is death. God cannot abide sin, sin has a consequence and sin cannot enter heaven. God made Adam and Eve as eternal beings that he could fellowship with. There is also a spiritual law known as imputation whereby the actions of one person is attributed to someone else. The sin of Adam has been imputed to all men who came after him. The fellowship between man and God was broken and the destiny of man then became death and separation from God in hell where man would be in torment for eternity. The many attributes of God are inclusive, they all exist together, and they can’t be infringed upon. God is love, which is why he created us in the first place. God is also a just God and because of his perfect justice our blood had to be shed because of our sin.

Because of the spiritual law of imputation the sins of all men could only be forgiven with the blood sacrifice of a man without blemish, a man without sin. Since all men after Adam were born with a sin nature nobody qualified as the perfect sacrificial lamb. God the Father, in collaboration with the other persons of the Godhead, came up with a plan of salvation for his special creation that met both his perfect justice and his eternal love for us. God Himself was the only person who could qualify as the perfect sacrifice to redeem a fallen mankind. God loved us so much he sacrificed his only begotten Son that we might have eternal life in heaven in fellowship with him.

Jesus, who had always existed as an invisible Spirit, came down from his throne and set aside his divine attributes, emptied himself, and came to earth in the flesh as a normal man. God had to be conceived in the womb, be born as a normal child and grow to manhood in order to qualify as the perfect man to redeem us from our sins. Jesus had to be fully man in order to qualify for the blood sacrifice needed to redeem us from our sins. However, Jesus was also fully God at the same time. Jesus was the only person who ever lived who was both man and God and the attributes of one did not infringe on the other.