Confident Living Magazine Articles - From The Archives

How to Find Long Tail Keywords Using Google Keyword Tool

How to Find Long Tail Keywords Using Google Keyword Tool

Bible Commentary (New Testament) Pocket Reference Edition

 TO READ CLEARLY PLEASE DOWNLOAD THE IMAGE 

FEW PAGES FROM THE BOOK:

Warren W. Wiersbe
President Back to the Bible

(This book is now available from Back to the Bible 

Office for a donation of Rs. 260.00. 

including packing and postage. 

Avail this treasure before stock ends!

For more information please contact:

info@backtothebible.in OR call 040 

27796353; OR SMS To 09492440070

Source Courtesy: 

Copyright 1991 by Warren W. Wiersbe

Thomas Neslson's Publishers, Nashville, Tennessee

Back to the Bible Intl.

Growing In Christ - 40 Days To Deeper Faith

IMMANUEL ARRIVES

"Today in the town of David a Savior has been born to you; he is the Messiah, the Lord. This will be a sign to you: You will find a baby wrapped in cloths and lying in a manger." — Luke 2:11-12

àSEE HIM 

The Birth of Jesus

Picture Credit: Back to the Bible, Lincoln, Nebraska

It doesn't seem like a suitable place for the King of kings: the animals, the filth, the smells, the flies, the dusty scratchy hay—and having a feeding trough, of all things, for a crib! But God, in His infinite love, chooses the humblest possible surroundings. No one can accuse Jesus of not knowing hardship and pain.

As Mary studies the face of her baby, she isn't just looking at a precious child; she's peering into the face of her Lord—His Majesty. Mary knows she's holding God in her arms. So this is the One the angel told me about.

She remembers what the angel had told her: "You are to call him Jesus. He will be great and will be called the Son of the Most High. The Lord God will give him the throne of his father David, and he will reign over Jacob's descendants forever; his kingdom will never end." 1

But at this very moment, baby Jesus looks like anything but a king. His face is reddish and prunelike. His cry, though strong and healthy, is still the helpless and piercing cry of a baby. 2 And He is absolutely dependent upon Mary for His well-being. 3

The sky above the manger is torn open with a multitude of the heavenly host praising God and promising peace on earth to those who please Him: "Glory to God in the highest heaven, and on earth peace to those on whom his favor rests."4

 As the angel choir withdraws into heaven, the sheepherders talk it over. "Let's get over to Bethlehem as fast as we can and see for ourselves what God has revealed to us." They leave, running, and find Mary and Joseph, and the baby lying in the manger. Seeing is believing. They tell everyone they meet what the angels said about this child. All who hear the sheepherders are impressed.' 5

Meanwhile, Mary remains as obedient as ever.6

è HEAR HIM 

Explore the Word: Luke 2:1-20

Two things strike me (Arnie) as I read this passage:

I can't help thinking about the stigma of being an unwed mother in the early Jewish culture. Imagine the angry stares and cruel remarks from those you once thought were friends. In spite of the fact that Mary's world has been forever altered in extraordinary ways, she remains committed to God's plan.  

Second, it's not to the kings, or to the great intellectual-As, or even to the celebrities that God sends the ultimate birth announcement. Instead, the Creator of the universe first shares His great joy with simple, humble shepherds. [Apparently high positions don't impress Him very much!)

Are our eyes fixed on God's faithful love? Can we see beyond our own problems and experience His love—just as Mary did? If you're having trouble with that, keep in mind that part of His love involved coming all the way down to our level to live in this dirty, sin-infested world in the person of His Son. Let's move in closer and get a better look at this Son....

No beauty. "He had no beauty or majesty to attract us to him, nothing in his appearance that we should desire him" (Isaiah 53:2).

No reputation. The Bible describes Jesus as one who

"made himself nothing by taking the very nature of a servant, being made in human likeness" (Philippians 2:7).

No sin. "God made him who had no sin to be sin for us, so that in him we might become the righteousness of God" (2 Corinthians 5:21).'

è KNOW Him

·         Meet the God of wonder. "For unto us a child is born, unto us a son is given. . . . His name shall be called.... Wonderful" (Isaiah 9:6 KJV). Even now He is working in just as amazing ways as when He created heaven and earth. Our challenge to you in the days ahead: Strive to get the full picture of Jesus and be attracted to Him with new awe and new wonder.

·          Work It Out: When you think of Jesus, what images come to mind? Are you attracted to Him with awe and wonder? (Please explain.)

·         Focus on Christ's image. His beauty comes from the inside out. His eyes radiate with unlimited peace; His smile speaks of incomprehensible joy. Most of all, His heart beats with boundless love.

* Work It Out: Do the negative opinions of skeptics sometimes shake your faith? (Please explain.) Are you able to stick with what God says is right. . .even in the face of doubters?

• Pray: "Lord, guide me today; help me know the purpose , You have created just for me."

Ask Jesus to give the kind of obedience that Mary demonstrated. Ask Him to focus your vision on His boundless love.

è NOTES FOR GROWTH

A Key Point I Learned Today:

______________________________________________________________________________

How I Want to Grow:

______________________________________________________________________________

My Prayer List:

____________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________

1. Luke 1:31-33. 2. Max Lucado, God Came Near (Portland: Multnomah Press, 1987), 23.

3. Ibid.

4. Luke 2:14

5. See Luke 2:15-18, MSG.

6. A portion of this story was adapted from Bill Myers and Michael Ross, Faith Encounter: Experience the Ultimate With Jesus (Eugene: Harvest House Publishers, 1999), 16-17.

7. Author and missionary Manfred Koehler contributed to today's devotional entry.

(An adaptation from the book “ GROWING IN CHRIST 40 Days to Deeper Faith” written by Dr. Arnie Cole & Michael Ross.  Copyright 2015 by Back to the Bible.)

Old Testament WORDS for Today

Old Testament WORDS for Today

By Warren W. Wiersbe

(President Back to the Bible)

Then the serpent said to the woman, "You will not surely die."

Genesis 3:4

Warren W. Wiersbe the author of this book in its Preface Says: 

Yet in the church I would rather speak five words with my understanding, that I may teach others also, than ten thousand words in a tongue.  1 CORINTHIANS 14:19

“If you know how to select them, five words can express unforgettable, life-changing thoughts.

Thomas Jefferson put five words in the Declaration of Independence that declared liberty for the American colonies: "We hold these truths to be self-evident, that all men are created equal." Abraham Lincoln quoted those five words in his famous Gettysburg Address.

"A specter is haunting Europe" are the words Karl Marx and Friedrich Engels chose to open their Communist Manifesto, a small book whose message changed the map of Europe.

On June 18, 1940, Prime Minister Winston Churchill heartened the British people with a speech that concluded with five unforgettable words: "Let us therefore brace ourselves to our duty, and so bear ourselves that, if the British Commonwealth and its Empire lasts for a thousand years, men will still say, `This was their finest hour.'"

The Bible contains many memorable five-word statements that are "living and powerful" (Heb. 4:12), inspired words that the Holy Spirit can use to direct us in today's chaotic world. In this book, I have provided meditations based on one hundred of these phrases as they are found in the Old Testament, using the New King James Version of the Scriptures. I trust that as you meditate on God's Word and ponder my words, the Spirit of God will enlighten you and encourage you, enabling you to discover the will of God and enjoy doing it."

Here is a page from this treasure:

God put our first parents into a lovely garden where all their needs were met and they had the privilege of fellowshipping with him and serving him. The enemy was prepared to attack, as he always is, and from this event we can get the instructions we need to obey to defeat him.

Don't give Satan a foothold. One of Adam's responsibilities was to "keep" the garden (Gen. 2:15), which means to guard it. It's the same word used in Genesis 3:24, "to guard the way to the tree of life." It seems that Adam was not with his wife at that time, so she was an easier target for the evil one. Ephesians 4:27 warns us not to "give place to the devil," for all he needs is a small foothold and he can begin to wage war. Even today, his servants stealthily creep in and cause trouble (2 Tim. 3:6; Jude 4). Cultivating a lustful or unkind thought can provide a foothold, and so can deliberately re-fusing to do God's will.

Don't listen to Satan's offers. Satan is a counterfeiter and a masquerader who never reveals his true nature. He can even come as an angel of light (2 Cor. 11:14) and lead us astray. We can tell when Satan is at work because he questions God's Word and encourages us to deny the authority of Scripture, asking us, "Has God indeed said . . . ?" Satan first questions the Word, then denies the Word, then substitutes his own lies. Our reply must be, "Yes, God did say, and I am going to respect it!" We must immediately turn to the Lord in prayer and seek his wisdom. He will remind us of what we have learned from the Scriptures and we can use the sword of the Spirit to defeat Satan, as Jesus did when Satan attacked him (Eph. 6:17; Matt. 4:1-11). It's important that we hide God's Word in our hearts, because this will enable us to overcome him (Ps. 119:11).

Remind yourself of God's rich blessings. A temptation is Satan's offer to give you something he claims that God hasn't given you. When Satan tempted Jesus, he suggested, "Your Father just said you were his beloved son. If he loves you, why are you hungry?" The warnings against temptation found in James 1:12-15 are followed by reminders that we are the recipients of God's good and perfect gifts (vv. 16-18). A temptation is Satan's cheap substitute for the real gifts from heaven, the Father has given us. The devil wanted Jesus to transform stones into bread, but Jesus preferred the nourishing bread of life, the Word of God (Matt. 4:4).

First Timothy 2:14 reminds us that Eve was deceived by Satan, but when Adam showed up, he sinned with his eyes wide open because he wanted to remain with his wife. It was his deliberate disobedience that plunged the human race into sin and judgment (Rom. 5:12-21). It was our Lord's obedience and death on the cross that saved us from condemnation and made us the children of God.

Resist the devil and he will flee from you. James 4:7

And take . . . the sword of the Spirit, which is the word of God.

Ephesians 6:17

(An adaptation from the book  "Old Testament WORDS for Today"  This book is now available from Back to the Bible Office for a donation of Rs. 590.00. Including packing and postage. Avail your copies before stock ends. For more information, please contact:
info@backtothebible.in OR call 040 27796353; 
OR SMS To 09492440070




Source: BakerBooks - Used by permission

Read And Subscribe Confident Living Magazine

Read And Subscribe Confident Living Magazine. 

Read some of contents from the April - May Issue.
Please click on the pictures to read clearly.
.

Source: Back to the Bible, India,
Confident Living Magazine, Secunderabad, India