Category: Bible Study

On a recent visit to my retina specialist, I met a very interesting man.

He was wearing a baseball cap with various decorations that told me he was a navy veteran. I spoke to him and asked him what ship he had served on and in what war.

He told me that over 20 years in the navy he had served on two aircraft carriers. We had a great conversation about his experiences while in the navy. He showed me many pictures taken while he was serving in the navy. In one picture I noticed his uniform’s left arm had several red chevrons.

Now each chevron or stripe indicates four years of service. If you have had disciplinary problems of some sort, you were required to wear a red chevron. As he showed me different pictures of him in his uniform, I noticed that in some of the pictures the chevrons were red while in other pictures the chevron was gold, and I asked him the difference.

He then explained to me that he did not want to wear the gold chevron because this indicates a perfect record. Over the years he had many bad experiences with the shore patrol which required him to wear the red stripe. (The shore patrol is the police force for the navy)

However, after 10 years of error free service the past is forgiven, and you are required to change on your uniform the red stripe to a gold stripe.

Since He was promoted to wear the gold chevron, by navy regulation to wear a uniform with red stripes he would be out of uniform and subject to court martial. Therefore, in the simplest terms possible, in the navy a red chevron means you have been bad, and a gold chevron means you have been good. He felt that he did not deserve to wear the gold chevron on his sleeve

As I thought about this, I said to myself, that is exactly how God looks at us. The Bible says that we all have sinned and come short of the glory of God. We all wear a spiritual red stripe in the sight of God because we have been bad, God calls it sin.

However, the good news is that by faith in Jesus; that red stripe is turned to gold in the eyes of God. In 2nd Corinthians 5:17 the Bible says ” If any man be in Christ, he is a new creature old things are passed away behold all things are become new”

As we walked out of the doctor’s office together, I asked him a simple question: in God’s sight are you wearing a gold stripe or a red stripe? He did not answer and slowly walked away.

My prayer for you is that if today you sense that you deserve a red stripe, turn to Jesus, ask him to be your Savior and symbolically you will have a gold stripe and a permeant place In God’s kingdom.

You are now a son or daughter of the Highest, and you can be assured that he will never turn his back on his own! But when you do sin simply go to your Heavenly Father, confess your sin and thank Him for forgiveness.

If you are at this time a child of the King go and share this story with another who may need a stripe changed from red to gold.

Why is God silent?

This is a question that every believer will ask at one time or another. and when it comes what is the answer?

There may be many ways to answer this question, but for the Christian there is only one solution: turn to your heavenly Father and ask good questions about the darkness that you are facing, and he will respond to you as He is your Heavenly Father.

You may rest assured that nothing will be allowed to come into your life without His knowledge, and it will be for your good.

” And we know that for those who love God all things work together for good, for those who are called according to his purpose.” (Romans 8: 28)

When we face difficulties usually the first response we have is to ask: why me and how long will this last? In Psalm 13:1,2 King David asks the same question: ” How long, O Lord? Will you forget me forever? How long will you hide your face from me? How long must I take counsel in my soul and have sorrow in my heart all the day? How long shall my enemy be exalted over me?

Notice in verse one that the author directs his request to the one capable of helping him, God. Only our Heavenly Father can give us the right direction. When you have a problem to whom do you go for council?

You will notice in verses one and two that he revealed his impatience with God when he used the expression ” how long” 4 different times.

The first question: “how long will you forget me” requires an answer:

" But Zion said' The Lord hath forsaken me, and my lord hath forgotten me. Can a woman forget her sucking child that she should not have compassion on the son of her womb? Yea they may forget yet I will not forget thee. Behold I have graven thee upon the palms of my hands; thy walls are continually before me." {Isaiah 49: 14- 16}

The answer to that question is very simple: your Heavenly Father has not and will never forget you!

 As believers who face many of these questions in our lives we must do as the psalmist did when he said...." I have trusted in thy mercy; my heart shall rejoice in thy salvation. I will sing unto the Lord, because he hath dealt bountifully with me." {Psalm 13:5,6}

Regardless of circumstance we must trust, rejoice and sing!

Two questions asked by people of every nationality and culture for centuries are:

Does God exist?

Can I know him?

The Bible teaches that “ No one has ever seen God……..” (John 1:18) and ” God is spirit” (John 4-24). If no one has ever seen God and he is a spirit, then how can we know that he exists and how can we know him?

The Bible says: ” The heavens declare the glory of God and the skies proclaim the work of his hands. Day after day they pour forth speech; night after night they display knowledge. There is no speech or language where their voice is not heard. Their voice goes out into all the earth, their words to the end of the world” [Psalm 19:1-4].

The world around us speaks to us every day and tells us that God does exist.

No intelligent person would look at an expensive Swiss watch and then deny that that watch had a maker. Rather, one would acknowledge that someone somewhere had designed and put that watch together.

Furthermore, the Bible says that: ” He {Jesus} is the image of the invisible God, the first-born over-all creation. For by him all things were created; things in heaven and on earth, visible and invisible…..”[Colossians 1 :15,16]

How do we know that God exists and that we can know him?

1. The creation declares him

2. In the person of Jesus, God became a man

However, we know that God exists, and we can know him only by faith.

” And without faith it is impossible to please God, because anyone who comes to him must believe that he exists and that he rewards those who earnestly seek him” [Hebrews 11:6 ]

When by an act of faith, we put our trust in God and his son Jesus Christ, we then have that faith affirmed in our hearts, and we know without doubt that God is, that he loves us and that we can know him.

May God bless you as you seek him today by faith!

This question has been asked by children and adults alike for centuries. The Bible speaks of the hand of God “…. I will stretch out my hand….”{Exodus 3: 20}

The face of God ” The face of the Lord is against them that do evil” {Psalm 34: 16}

The arm of God ” Surely the arm of the Lord is not too short to save…….{Isaiah 59: 1}

The ear of God “…… nor his ear to dull to hear” {Isaiah 59: 1}

However, the Bible also declares that: “… no man has ever seen God. …” {John 1: 18}

So how do we know what God looks like? “…… God himself entered mankind in the person of Jesus Christ and as we see Jesus, we see God. ” For in Christ all the fullness of the deity lives in bodily form” [Colossians 2: 9}

The first four books of the New Testament, Matthew, Mark, Luke, and John, tells us about Jesus and Jesus has revealed God the father to us.

Jesus told Philip: ” Anyone who has seen me has seen the father” {John 14: 9}

The writer of the book of Hebrews tells us this “ …. the Son is the radiance of God’s glory and the exact representation of his being……{Hebrews 1: 3}

The question is, what does God look like? If you want to know what God looks like, you must study the life of Jesus as given to us in the writings of Matthew, Mark, Luke, and John.

How do we know God? We know God through Jesus, for he is the revelation of God the Father who loves you and has a plan, a good plan, for your life. He will help you when you seek him. The wonderful truth is that at this moment God is seeking you.

However, he will never force his truth on you but will respond to a very simple prayer of faith when you ask him to come into and to change your life. When this happens, a whole new world will open up to you

My prayer Is that you will do this today!

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Perhaps the most common goal of people today is peace.

The dictionary defines peace as the normal, non-warring condition of a person, a nation, a group of nations or the world. The Bible also has a definition for peace.

Most of the suffering in the world today would end if people would choose to live in peace. The world found peace in 1919 when World War 1 ended, and the world established an organization called the League of Nations. This failed to produce a lasting peace. Again, in 1945 after the Second World War, another organization was formed called the United Nations. It also failed to produce world peace. And today there is still no peace in the world.

The Bible teaches two kinds of peace.

First, there is a peace that exists between groups of people.

Second, there is a peace that exists in the heart of a person, and this peace is not affected by the external peace the world gives.

The Bible speaks very clearly on the topic of peace and how one may attain it. Jesus taught two kinds of peace:

(1) ” Peace, I leave with you my peace I give to you, and (2) not as the world gives do I give to you….” (John 14:27).

Jesus gives peace and the world gives peace, but the peace the world gives is transitory, not permanent and can be easily lost.

The peace Jesus gives is a permanent relationship with God through faith:

“Therefore, since we have been justified by faith we have peace with God through our Lord Jesus Christ.” (Romans 5:1) This peace with God can never be lost!

Following our peace with God, we also may have the peace of God:

” Don’t worry about anything but in everything by prayer and petition with thanksgiving, let your requests be known to God: and the peace of God, which surpasses all understanding will guard your hearts and minds through Christ Jesus.” (Philippians 4: 6,7)

Every person who has repented of unbelief and turned to God in faith has peace with God. and this peace with God can never be reversed.

Peace with God is established forever when we trust Jesus as our Savior and the peace of God occurs when we as believers acknowledge and repent of sin in our lives.

Let me encourage you to be a good citizen and to work for peace in this world, but also to examine your life and make certain that you have peace with God. Trust Him today and in every difficult situation you face seek the peace of God through repentance, obedience and thankful prayer.

Blessings on you as you seek to live for Him today and in the future.

An essential to all life whether to plant, animal or human is food… food is any substance that is eaten or otherwise taken into the body to sustain life, to provide energy, and to promote growth. Any living organism deprived of food will soon shrivel up and die.

The physical body needs food and. we work long hours each day to earn money in order to buy food to have strength to go to work, to earn more money, to buy mote food, to have strength and it goes on and on. We make every effort to see that our children and others we love have food to eat and the place to stay.

However, a person is much more than just a physical body; he is also a spiritual being and that spiritual being craves and needs spiritual food.

Jesus said in Matthew 4:4 ” Man shall not live by read alone but by every word that comes from the mouth of God ”

This food feeds the soul, and just as physical bread satisfies the pangs of hunger in a person the Bible is spiritual food that satisfies the hunger of the soul. Only God can satisfy the hunger of the heart.

The Bible teaches that God wants to provide us this spiritual food and that it is free.

” Come, everyone who thirsts, come to the waters; and he who has no money, come, buy and eat! Come by wine and milk without money and without price. Why do you spend your money for that which is not bread and your labor for that which does not satisfy.? Listen diligently to me, and eat what is good, and delight yourselves in rich food. Incline your ear and come to me; hear; that your soul may live……” (Isaiah 55:1-3)

Jesus said, ” I am the bread of life. He who comes to me will never go hungry, and he who believes in me will never be thirsty.” (John 6:35}

God has put within every person a spiritual vacuum, a spiritual hunger, that only He, can fill and satisfy. You can fill this void in the heart by loving and serving the God who made the world and all things in it. He is Lord of heaven and earth.

Let me encourage you to continue eating food that is nutritious and that will give you and your family strong healthy bodies. Also, take time to feed your soul by reading the Bible each day. If you need direction in getting started, begin with chapter one of the Gospel of John and read one chapter a day and in 21 days you’ll have read the entire book. this is spiritual food for your soul, And I highly recommend it.

If this is all new to you The following verse From the Bible explains how you may have forgiveness of sin and eternal life. The words in quotes are mine.

“For God (The God in the Bible) so loved the world (You) that he (G0d) gave his only Son (Jesus) that whoever ( you ) believes in him (Jesus) should not perish but have eternal life. For God did not send his Son (Jesus) into the world to condemn the world (You) but in order that the world (You) might be saved…..” (John 3:16-17)

If you want to know how Jesus can change your life simply pray this prayer: God: I don’t know you, but I want to. Please help me understand these words. I pray in Jesus name.

God, I have tried other gods, but my life has not been changed. Please change my life and help me to know more about you. I ask this in Jesus name.

God, I want to know and understand the Jesus described here. Please bring someone into my life to help me. I ask this in Jesus name.

God, this is an exciting story and I want to know how I can know you. Right now I aske Jesus to be a part of my life.

God, I believe these words and I now ask Jesus for more understanding and to guide my life.

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