Friday, May 31, 2013

Treasury of Truth: Conclusion


Did you participate in this month's Treasury of Truth? I'd love to hear about your experiences! This mini-challenge focused on a concentrated reading of several Psalms: Psalm 23, 25, 100, 103, and 139. (As a bonus, I also included Romans 8 for the final week!) The Psalm we were encouraged to read each day of the month was Psalm 139. All Scripture quotes are taken from the NKJV, except for Psalm 25 which is quoted from the NIV).

Why I chose Psalm 139:

I chose Psalm 139 because it is RICH in truth. Truth about who God is. Truth about who we are. (We are God's creation! We are fearfully and wonderfully made by God!) Truth about how we can have a relationship with God. Truth about how God is always, always, always with us! There is great comfort in knowing that "In Your book they all were written, the days fashioned for me, when as yet there were none of them."

What did you learn from reading, studying, or meditating on Psalm 139? Did any verses speak to you? Want to share any insights?

Why I chose Psalm 23:

Psalm 23 was an obvious choice. I knew I was choosing one of the better known Psalms. But I chose it because it was true and comforting even if it was familiar and obvious. Sometimes the truth we need to have spoken are OBVIOUS truths. God is a God of comfort. This Psalm highlights a relationship: a tender, trusting, loving relationship. Again, we have highlighted the fact that God is WITH US. And because he is with us, there is no reason to fear. For God is tenderly, carefully watching us, guiding us, restoring us. Isn't it wonderful that we will dwell in the house of the LORD forever?

Is Psalm 23 one of your favorites? Do you have a favorite verse?

Why I chose Psalm 25:

Did you notice that the theme of this challenge is Psalm 25:4-5? "Show me your ways, LORD, teach me your paths. Guide me in your truth and teach me, for you are God my Savior, and my hope is in you all day long." This plea, this prayer should be OURS. Christians should seek the truth, love the truth, treasure the truth! I also chose this Psalm because it is so honest and conflicted. The writer is very emotional; and this is very personal. Go to God as you are, with all your feelings, with all your being. As Alexander Whyte said so beautifully, "Wherever in all the world there is a human heart, God also is there. And He is there in order to have that heart poured out before Him."

Did you learn anything from reading Psalm 25?

Why I chose Psalm 100:

I chose Psalm 100 because it is so JOYFUL. It is short, joyful, and has quite a few gems! We are designed to worship God. We are called to DELIGHT IN GOD; our joy is to overflow from glimpsing God's majesty, God's glory. The more we know of God, the more we KNOW God, the more we want to praise Him, need to praise Him. Verses one and two and four and five all speak of praising God. Verse three highlights one good reason to praise Him: Know that the LORD is God. It is he who has made us, and not we ourselves; We are His people and the sheep of His pasture. I thought this Psalm complemented Psalm 139 and Psalm 23 beautifully! I love the imagery of us being the sheep of His pasture. For it reminds me of John 10:11 and John 10:27-28. (Another GREAT verse is found in Isaiah 40:11, which reads: He will feed His flock like a shepherd; He will gather the lambs with His arm, and carry them in His bosom, And gently lead those who are with young.)

Do you enjoy singing praises to God?

Why I chose Psalm 103:

Psalm 103 was one of the very first Psalms I chose for this project. In fact, I was tempted to make this Psalm the one we should read each and every day! It is so very rich in truth. This Psalm contains great truths about who God is and what God has done for us in Christ. How can one read this without rejoicing?! He has not dealt with us according to our sins!!! Why?! Because of Jesus Christ who took our sins and satisfied the wrath of God! Our transgressions, our sins are gone! God forgives. God heals. God redeems. God crowns. God satisfies.

Bless the LORD, O my soul;
And all that is within me, bless His holy name!
Bless the LORD, O my soul,
And forget not all His benefits:
Who forgives all your iniquities,
Who heals all your diseases,
Who redeems your life from destruction,
Who crowns you with lovingkindness and tender mercies,
Who satisfies your mouth with good things,
So that your youth is renewed like the eagle's. (Psalm 103:1-5)

He has not dealt with us according to our sins,
Nor punished us according to our iniquities.
For as the heavens are high above the earth,
So great is His mercy toward those who fear Him;
As far as the east is from the west,
So far has He removed our transgressions from us. (Psalm 103:10-12)

What did you learn from reading Psalm 103? What verses spoke to you? Can you imagine what a blessing it would be to live every day of your life holding onto these truths?

Why I chose Romans 8:

Reading Romans can change lives. Martin Luther writes that Romans is, "the true masterpiece of the New Testament and the very purest Gospel, which is well-worthy and deserving that a Christian man should not only learn it by heart, word for word, but also that he should daily deal with it as the daily bread of men's souls. It can never be too much or too well read or studied; and the more it is handled, the more precious it becomes, and the better it tastes." While I love many, many chapters in the book of Romans, I chose just one for this treasury of truth project, the 8th chapter. It is an amazing chapter.

Yet in all these things we are more than conquerors through Him who loved us. For I am persuaded that neither death nor life, nor angels nor principalities nor power, nor things present nor things to come, nor height nor depth, nor any other created thing, shall be able to separate us from the love of God which is in Christ Jesus our Lord. (Romans 8:37-38)

What verses are your favorites?

I also chose five songs, one for each week. I included a video link each time so you could listen to the song for free.

Song of the Week: "Just As I Am" by Andrew Peterson (amazon mp3)
Song of the Week: "Meant to Be" by Steven Curtis Chapman (amazon mp3)
Song of the Week: "How Great Is Our God" by Chris Tomlin (amazon mp3)
Song of the Week: "I Will Rise" by Chris Tomlin (amazon mp3)
Song of the Week: "Never Been A Greater Love" by Aaron Shust (amazon mp3)

If you haven't taken the time to listen to these songs yet, consider it. They were chosen because they were biblical songs rich in truth. These songs can remind and encourage! 

© Becky Laney of Operation Actually Read Bible

Thursday, May 30, 2013

Come Before His Presence With Singing!

Our faith is a sung faith. (Mike Cosper, Rhythms of Grace, 152)
I pledge before Thee that I will not sing a song I am not willing to live. (A.W. Tozer, God's Power For Your Life)
How long should a person thank God for forgiving his sins? Is life long enough? Is time long enough? Is eternity long enough? How long should a man thank God for saving him from going down to hell? Would fifty years suffice? Oh, no, that would never do; the blessing is too great to all be sung of in a millennium. (Charles Spurgeon, Power in the Blood, 69)
The words we hear, sing, and speak in worship help form: our images of God; our understanding of what the church is and does; our understanding of human brokenness and healing; our sense of purpose as individuals and as a church; our religious affections: awe, humility, delight, contrition, hope; our vision of wholeness for ourselves and all creation; our practices of engaging with God, with each other, and with the world. (Ron Rienstra, Worship Words)
Awe combined with intimacy is the essence of Christian worship. (J.D. Greear, Gospel, 91)
We praise what we enjoy because the delight is incomplete until it is expressed in praise. If we were not allowed to speak of what we value, and celebrate what we love, and praise what we admire, our joy would not be full. So if God loves us enough to make our joy full, he must not only give us himself; he must also win from us the praises of our hearts--not because he needs to shore up some weakness in himself or compensate for some deficiency, but because he loves us and seeks the fullness of our joy that can be found only in knowing and praising him, the most magnificent of all Beings. (John Piper, Desiring God, 49)
In many ways, worship is where heaven and earth meet. And the things of earth--the concerns and worries and fears that burden us--can hardly survive the encounter. (Chris Tiegreen, Unburdened, 169)
If you find worship boring down here and you are not interested in worshiping the Lord Jesus and expressing your heart’s desire to Him, why in the world do you want to go to heaven? We are going to spend a lot of time up there worshiping Him. (J. Vernon McGee, Thru the Bible, Revelation 1-5)
By nature, worship is not some performance we do, but a Presence we experience. (A.W. Tozer, 177)
God is with us now as much as He will be with us in eternity. (John MacArthur, Worship, 98)

© Becky Laney of Operation Actually Read Bible

May Reflections

The books I read this month:

  1. Crucifying Morality: The Gospel of the Beatitudes. R.W. Glenn. 2013. Shepherd Press. 128 pages.
  2. God's Power For Your Life: How the Holy Spirit Transforms You Through God's Word. A.W. Tozer. Edited by James L. Snyder. 2013. 224 pages. 
  3. The Radical Cross.  A.W. Tozer. Christian Publications. 148 pages.
  4. The Scriptures Testify About Me: Jesus and the Gospel In the Old Testament. Edited by D.A. Carson. Featuring essays by R. Albert Mohler Jr., Tim Keller, Alistair Begg, James MacDonald, Conrad Mbewe, Matt Chandler, Mike Bullmore, and D.A. Carson. 2013. Crossway. 188 pages.
  5. In The Steps of St. Paul. H.V. Morton. 1935. 528 pages.
  6. Love's Unending Legacy. Janette Oke. 1984. Bethany House. 239 pages.
  7. The Sovereignty and Supremacy of King Jesus: Bowing to the Gracious Despot. Mike Abendroth. 2011. Day One. 240 pages.  
  8. Revelation 14-22 (Thru the Bible Commentary Series) J. Vernon McGee. Thomas Nelson. 204 pages.
  9. According to the Pattern. Grace Livingston Hill. 1903. 186 pages. 
  10. Words to Winners of Souls. Horatius Bonar. 1877. 72 pages.  
  11. Gospel: Recovering the Power That Made Christianity Revolutionary. J.D. Greear. Foreword by Timothy Keller. B&H Books. 266 pages.  
  12. Christ the Eternal Son. A.W. Tozer. 175 pages. 
  13. The Bookends of the Christian Life. Jerry Bridges and Bob Bevington. 2009. March 2009. Crossway Publishers. 160 pages. 
  14. Roses Have Thorns: A Novel of Elizabeth I. Sandra Byrd. Simon & Schuster. 336 pages. 
The Spurgeon sermons I read this month:

© Becky Laney of Operation Actually Read Bible

Wednesday, May 29, 2013

Quoting Andrew Murray #5

This is my fifth post featuring quotes from Andrew Murray. (The first, second, third, and fourth).
A patient who had been in a serious accident once asked a doctor, "Doctor, how long will I have to lie here?" The answer, "Only a day at a time," taught the patient a precious lesson. ~ Andrew Murray, Abiding in Christ
One of the first prerequisites to fruitful Bible study is the knowledge of God and the Omnipotent One and of the power of His Word.  The Word of the living God is a living word and it gives life. It not only calls into existence but it also makes alive that which was dead. All spiritual life comes through it. One of the deepest secrets of receiving the blessing of God's Word is faith--faith that the Word will work in me the very thing it commands or promises. It effectually works in those who believe. Nothing can resist its power when received into the heart through the Holy Spirit. ~ Andrew Murray, The Believer's Daily Renewal
The Word I study is the power of God unto salvation; it will work in me all that I need and all that the Father requires. ~ Andrew Murray, The Believer's Daily Renewal
The heavenly life must be nourished by heavenly food and drink, by Jesus himself. ~ Andrew Murray, The Blood of Christ
The greatest stumbling block in the way of victory over prayerlessness is the secret feeling that we will never obtain the blessing of being delivered from it. Do you really long for the courage to believe that deliverance from a prayerless life is possible for you and may become a reality? Then you must learn the great lesson that such a deliverance is included in the redemption that is in Christ Jesus, that it is one of the blessings of the new covenant that God himself will impart to you through Christ Jesus. ~ Andrew Murray, Living a Prayerful Life
Faith is that meekness of soul that waits in stillness to hear, understand, and accept what God says, and to receive, retain, and possess what God gives or does. ~ Andrew Murray, The Path to Holiness
God's Word is food, bread from heaven; the first prerequisite of Bible study is a great hunger after righteousness, a sincere desire to do all God's will. The Bible is a light; the first condition to its enjoyment is a hearty longing to walk in God's ways. The Word is nothing if it is not obeyed. All true knowledge of God's Word depends upon there being first a will to obey it. ~ Andrew Murray, The Believer's Daily Renewal
© Becky Laney of Operation Actually Read Bible

Tuesday, May 28, 2013

My Year with Spurgeon, Week #21

It is well to know, as certainly David did, that we belong to the Lord. There is a noble tone of confidence about this sentence. There is no "if" nor "but," nor even "I hope so;" but he says, "The Lord is my shepherd." We must cultivate the spirit of assured dependence upon our heavenly Father. The sweetest word of the whole is that monosyllable, "My." He does not say, "The Lord is the shepherd of the world at large, and leadeth forth the multitude as his flock," but "The Lord is my shepherd;" if he be a Shepherd to no one else, he is a Shepherd to me; he cares for me, watches over me, and preserves me. The words are in the present tense. Whatever be the believer's position, he is even now under the pastoral care of Jehovah. ~ Charles Spurgeon, The Treasury of David, Psalm 23
"He maketh me to lie down in green pastures." What are these "green pastures" but the Scriptures of truth—always fresh, always rich, and never exhausted? There is no fear of biting the bare ground where the grass is long enough for the flock to lie down in it. Sweet and full are the doctrines of the gospel; fit food for souls, as tender grass is natural nutriment for sheep. When by faith we are enabled to find rest in the promises, we are like the sheep that lie down in the midst of the pasture; we find at the same moment both provender and peace, rest and refreshment, serenity and satisfaction. But observe: "He maketh me to lie down." It is the Lord who graciously enables us to perceive the preciousness of his truth, and to feed upon it. How grateful ought we to be for the power to appropriate the promises! There are some distracted souls who would give worlds if they could but do this. They know the blessedness of it, but they cannot say that this blessedness is theirs. They know the "green pastures," but they are not made to "lie down" in them. Those believers who have for years enjoyed a "full assurance of faith" should greatly bless their gracious God. ~ Charles Spurgeon, The Treasury of David, Psalm 23
"He leadeth me beside the still waters." What are these "still waters" but the influences and graces of his blessed Spirit? His Spirit attends us in various operations, like waters—in the plural—to cleanse, to refresh, to fertilise, to cherish. That silence is golden indeed in which the Holy Spirit meets with the souls of his saints. Not to raging waves of strife, but to peaceful streams of holy love does the Spirit of God conduct the chosen sheep. He is a dove, not an eagle; the dew, not the hurricane. Our Lord leads us beside these "still waters;" we could not go there of ourselves, we need his guidance, therefore it is said, "he leadeth me." ~ Charles Spurgeon, The Treasury of David, Psalm 23
The Christian is not obedient to some commandments and neglectful of others; he does not pick and choose, but yields to all. It is to the honour of our great Shepherd that we should be a holy people, walking in the narrow way of righteousness. If we be so led and guided we must not fail to adore our heavenly Shepherd's care. ~ Charles Spurgeon, The Treasury of David, Psalm 23
Observe that it is not walking in the valley, but through the valley. We go through the dark tunnel of death and emerge into the light of immortality. We do not die, we do but sleep to wake in glory. Death is not the house but the porch, not the goal but the passage to it. The dying article is called a valley. The storm breaks on the mountain, but the valley is the place of quietude, and thus full often the last days of the Christian are the most peaceful of his whole career; the mountain is bleak and bare, but the valley is rich with golden sheaves, and many a saint has reaped more joy and knowledge when he came to die than he ever knew while he lived. And, then, it is not "the valley of death," but "the valley of the shadow of death," for death in its substance has been removed, and only the shadow of it remains. ~ Charles Spurgeon, The Treasury of David, Psalm 23

© Becky Laney of Operation Actually Read Bible

Monday, May 27, 2013

Book Review: Love's Unending Legacy (1984)

Love's Unending Legacy. Janette Oke. 1984. Bethany House. 239 pages.

Love's Unending Legacy is the fifth book in Janette Oke's Love Comes Softly series. In this one, Clark and Marty return home after a very long visit with Missie and Willie. It takes a few weeks--if not months--to adjust back into their "normal" routines. Especially for Marty! For she discovers that she is pregnant. She's embarrassed by this pregnancy because she has quite a few grandchildren already. Her daughter-in-law, Clare's wife, is also expecting; they'll be due around the same time! Adding to her "shame" is the fact that Arnie will be getting very soon! While this pregnancy is the focus of the first half of the novel, the second half focuses more on Ellie. It is time for Ellie to fall in love, get married, and start a family of her own! But who is the right man for Ellie?!

I enjoyed this one. I had forgotten a few things about it since it has been quite a while since I last read it. But for the most part, it was just as pleasant as I remembered it. I do enjoy Ellie and Lane!

© Becky Laney of Operation Actually Read Bible

Sunday, May 26, 2013

Week Five, Treasury of Truth



Welcome to the mini-challenge, Treasury of Truth! I hope you benefit from reading, meditating, and studying the Word this month! Perhaps Bible reading isn't a daily part of your life, this would be a great opportunity to start! Here are the goals for this week:


Week five, May 26-May 31
Primary goal: read Psalm 139 five to six times
Secondary goal: read Romans 8 three to four times
Extra Credit: read the book of Romans
Song of the Week: "Never Been A Greater Love" by Aaron Shust (amazon mp3)

From Note to Self by Joe Thorn
Crave the word of God. Be desperate for it! Seek it. Yearn for it. Long for it. Desire it. Tolerate nothing in your life that might diminish your hunger for God's Word. And apply it with vigor and spiritual energy! The Word of God, whether it is preached and heard or read and memorized is more than simply true. It is effectual. The Word of God does more than merely announce: it accomplishes! It doesn't just impart information: it creates life! ~ Sam Storms, Foreword, (19) 
From Purity by Lydia Brownback
We will never love God purely--wholeheartedly--apart from immersing ourselves in God's Word because it is only in Scripture that we learn what God is like. To know him is to love him, and we always desire more of what we love most. (23)
From God Loves You by David Jeremiah
The profound thought of God's love should begin and end your every day. It should define your every goal, your every action. (3)
From Expository Thoughts on the Gospels by J.C. Ryle
Our sins may be many and great, but the payment made by our Great Substitute far outweighs them all.
From God's Power For Your Life by A.W. Tozer
"I stand alone on the Word of God," is the most important truth that we can know.
The people of God ought to be people who have chewed the book, swallowed the book, digested the book, and absorbed the book until it has colored them and given them the right complexion... God's people are called to be heroic. They are called to ingest and work through even the difficult truths contained in God's Word.

© Becky Laney of Operation Actually Read Bible

Week In Review: May 19-25

1599 Geneva Bible

  • Psalm 23
  • Psalm 25
  • Psalm 100
  • Psalm 103
  • Psalm 139
  • John 13, 14, 15, 16, 17


Revised Version 1885

  • Genesis 1-25
  • Psalm 23
  • Psalm 139
  • John
  • 1 John
  • 2 John
  • 3 John
  • Jude
  • Revelation


NEB
  • Psalms 1-20
  • Proverbs 25-31
  • Jeremiah 24-52

NKJV

  • Psalm 23
  • Psalm 139
  • Matthew 3-11


GNT

  • Psalm 23, 25, 100, 103, 139
  • Revelation 


ESV

  • Psalm 23 (3)
  • Psalm 139 (3)


NASB

  • Psalm 23
  • Psalm 139




© Becky Laney of Operation Actually Read Bible

Friday, May 24, 2013

Book Review: Crucifying Morality (2013)

Crucifying Morality: The Gospel of the Beatitudes. R.W. Glenn. 2013. Shepherd Press. 128 pages.

I definitely loved R.W. Glenn's Crucifying Morality. I think it did a great job focusing on the work Christ has done on our behalf, of illustrating that the beatitudes are not ever to be a Christian's "to do" list. Apart from Christ, a person cannot hope to obtain God's blessing or favor. (If you'd like to read the beatitudes yourself, they can be found in Matthew 5:3-12.)

He also did a wonderful job in showing that the beatitudes build on one another. That one can't mourn until one has become poor in spirit; that one can't hunger and thirst for righteousness unless you're first made meek; that you can't be pure in heart until you're merciful. I had never thought about it in quite that way, and so it was refreshing to meditate on the beatitudes in a new way.

Glenn persuasively shows that Christ is the ultimate fulfillment of the beatitudes. That he ultimately shows us what it is to be poor in spirit, to mourn, to be meek, to hunger and thirst for righteousness, to be merciful, to be pure, to be a peacemaker, to be persecuted. He lived the beatitudes.

I just LOVED, LOVED, LOVED this one!!!

Favorite quotes:
Being blessed by God is not something that you earn or achieve. God gives blessedness as a gift: he shows favor to people who have no right to it whatsoever. It is simply an expression of God's grace, which is always a surprise. 
Jesus' teaching is too radical to be stuck on felt.
Kingdom blessing looks like the opposite of everything we value. So don't moralize the Beatitudes, sterilizing the gospel as though it is primarily or even only a rulebook for nicer living. You cannot put the mind-altering, world-shattering nature of the Beatitudes into neat categories. Jesus won't let you.
The Beatitudes declare what a child of the kingdom looks like; they do not list dos and don'ts that get you in the kingdom.
Therefore, do not seek poverty of spirit. Seek Jesus. As you see what it cost the heavenly Father to save you, you will see yourself as bankrupt beyond words. Seek Jesus, and you will mourn not because of what your sin cost you, but because of what it cost your heavenly Father. Seek Jesus, and meekness will overflow in your life. Who can take a posture of superiority at the foot of the cross? Seek Jesus, and you will find all the righteousness you will ever need: his perfect record given to you freely as a gift. Seek Jesus, and you will be merciful, for the most needy recipient of a handout is the person you see in the mirror every day. Seek Jesus, and you will find your heart more and more singular in its devotion to God and more willing to be honest with other people. Seek Jesus, and you will continually sheath your sword and seek reconciliation with others because you know the utter serenity achieved between you and God by the blood of Jesus. Seek Jesus, and you will gladly bear reproach for his name. Do not seek the Beatitudes. Do not turn them into moralistic teaching. Seek Jesus Christ who alone embodies the Beatitudes, and the Beatitudes will then be true of you as well. Why? Because Jesus fulfills them.
The Beatitudes are all about Jesus. Seek him through the gospel and you will be a new person, enjoying all the benefits of a relationship with God, living in the kingdom. Christianity is about coming over and over again to rest in the life that Jesus lived and the death that he died for you as a gift of sheer grace. 
The fundamental character of the Christian faith is that you live conscious of your utter dependence upon God.
Grace allows me to hear the hardest things about my flaws and patterns of sin because I know, by grace, that there is no flaw I can discover nor any sin I can unearth that can ever decimate my life. I cannot be any more loved and accepted than I am by the Lord who loves me with the full knowledge of what I have done, am doing, and will do; I have unshakable confidence that nothing can reduce his love for me. Therefore, I am free to admit my desperation. In so doing, I can experience real change, which is the very power of the kingdom of heaven in my life. 
The problem is that we do not understand how truly miserable we are, nor how desperately we need God to comfort us. If we did, we would mourn gladly, and then delight in God more deeply than we ever could before.
The gospel of Jesus Christ is not good news to the comfortable, but to the uncomfortable.
If you truly grieve your own sin, you cannot help but grieve the sin all around you...mourning is the only sane, reasonable response to seeing ourselves and the world as we really are. 
To whatever extent you remember and rejoice in the work of Jesus on your behalf, to that extent you will be blessedly satisfied. 
Thomas Watson said, "The hypocrite suspects others and has charitable thoughts of himself. The sincere Christian has charitable thoughts of others and suspects himself.
Whatever degree we lack purity of heart, to that degree have we failed to comprehend the gospel.
You did not earn adoption but received it as a gift without any reference to your own goodness, so you can be sure that he will not take it away when you fail him now. Nothing can separate you from the adoptive love of God that is in Christ Jesus.
The Sermon on the Mount is the expression of a life gripped by God's grace. 

© Becky Laney of Operation Actually Read Bible

Book Review: The Scriptures Testify About Me

The Scriptures Testify About Me: Jesus and the Gospel In the Old Testament. Edited by D.A. Carson. Featuring essays by R. Albert Mohler Jr., Tim Keller, Alistair Begg, James MacDonald, Conrad Mbewe, Matt Chandler, Mike Bullmore, and D.A. Carson. 2013. Crossway. 188 pages.


From chapter one,

The entire Scriptures--and Jesus was referring specifically to the Old Testament--bear witness to Jesus. In other words, Jesus said, in effect, "You cannot read those words without reading of me. You cannot read the Law without reading of me. You cannot read the History without reading of me. You cannot read the Psalms without reading of me. You cannot read the Prophets without reading of me." (18)


I love the Bible, and I love the Old Testament. I know some readers don't take the time to read or try to understand the Old Testament, but, for me it's worth it. There are treasures to be found in discovering what the Old Testament has to say about Jesus Christ. This book highlights eight examples of Christ in the Old Testament. The first chapter, "Studying the Scriptures and Finding Jesus," serves as the introduction to the concept of preaching Christ from the Old Testament. The scriptural foundation is John 5:31-47. The remaining seven chapters are drawn from the Old Testament. The passages highlighted include: Exodus 14:1-31, Ruth, Psalm 25:1-22, Jeremiah 23:1-8, Ecclesiastes 11:9-12:8, Zephaniah, Psalm 110:1-7.

The Scriptures Testify About Me is a collection of sermons or a collection of essays. Each writer has their own style or their own voice. Some chapters meant more to me than others. Some I felt were really strong and persuasive, others not quite as much. What all writers have in common is a passion for the Word of God, a zeal for making Christ known to their audiences.

The chapters can be read in any order.

Favorite quotes:
The Old Testament is not the story we have to know before we know the real story. Rather, the gospel is in all of it. (Mohler, 24)
We mush preach Christ from all the Scriptures and find Christ in the gospel of the Old Testament as well as in the New. We need to allow the New Testament to train us how to read the Old. We must put the Bible back into the hands of believers--intact and whole--with Christ and the gospel of our redemption at the center. (Mohler, 32)
If there is one Old Testament passage that the New Testament invites us to read in a Christ-centered way as a paradigm of Christ's salvation, it's the exodus...What can we learn from the Red Sea crossing about Jesus and our salvation? Three lessons: salvation is about getting out, but it's about 1) what we're getting out of: bondage with layers; 2) how we're getting out of it: crossing over by grace; 3) why we can get out of it: the Mediator. (Keller, 36)
Redemption means to be released from bondage. The very heart of our understanding what salvation is all about is release from bondage. (Keller, 38)
Sin is the suicidal action of the human will. It destroys the power to do right, which is man's true freedom. (Keller quoting W.G. T. Shedd, 40)
You are not saved because of the quality of your faith. You are saved because of the object of your faith: the Redeemer, the God who is fighting for you. (Keller, 47)
If there is fog in the pulpit, we should not expect clarity in the pew. When it comes to our preaching Christ in all the Scriptures, our congregation should not be mystified by our wizardry, exclaiming, "How did he do that!" Rather they should be edified by our clarity, declaring, "That makes sense to me." We should have confidence in unfolding the Scriptures in this way because Jesus explained to his followers that the Law of Moses and the Prophets and the Psalms (the threefold division of the Hebrew Bible) point to him (Luke 24:44). (Begg, 57)
The litmus test of whether you understand the gospel is what you do when you fail. Do you run from God and go clean yourself up a little bit before you come back into the throne room? Or do you approach the throne of grace with confidence? If you don't approach the throne of grace with confidence, you don't understand the gospel. You think you can get yourself clean enough to stay in the club. It's not you only at your worst that God has a problem with. It's you at your best. (Chandler, 120)
Do not assume the gospel. It must be explicit, and it must constantly be explicit. If you assume it, then all people will hear is moralistic therapeutic deism: "Do this. Don't do that. Go here. Don't go there." They will not understand that their righteousness is blood-bought. Don't assume it. (Chandler, 123)
The glory of the gospel is this. The One from whom we need to be saved is the very One who saves us. (Bullmore, 136)

© Becky Laney of Operation Actually Read Bible

Thursday, May 23, 2013

Book Review: God's Power For Your Life

God's Power For Your Life: How the Holy Spirit Transforms You Through God's Word. A.W. Tozer. Edited by James L. Snyder. 2013. 224 pages.

I've been anticipating the release of God's Power For Your Life since Christmas! I love, love, love A.W. Tozer. And I'm so happy and so thankful that James L. Snyder is working to publish more of Tozer's works! New Tozer releases makes me HAPPY.

If you LOVE the Bible, if you TREASURE the Bible, then this A.W. Tozer book is for you. Of course, the message of this one is for ALL believers regardless of whether they "treasure" the Bible as they should or not. The message is relevant for every believer; it's not just for those that love and adore the Bible.

The chapters include: "God's Unique Thing: The Bible," "The Challenge to God's Authority," "The Rightful Place of the Living Word," "The Firm Foundation of the Living Word," "The Authority of God Rests on the Bible," "Taking the Word of God Seriously," "Dealing with the Great Spiritual Deception," "The Never-Ending Battle for the Mind," "When Facing the Lethal Lie," "God's Faithful Rebuke to His Covenant People," "Dealing with the Assault to God's Power," "The Effect of God's Word in a Person's Life," "The Christian's Ladder of Spiritual Power," "The Potency of God's Word Toward His People," "The Word of Life," "The Mystery of God's Strange Silence," "The Power of the Holy Spirit on the Word of God," "Most Sure of His Promise," and "An Open Invitation."

While this book is about the Bible--the Word of God, it is just as much about the HOLY SPIRIT and the work of the Holy Spirit in the lives of believers. I LOVE reading books on the Spirit! I do. This book had some incredible moments. I learned so much!

Favorite quotes:
How many of us really know what it means to come into the presence of God and linger there? The purpose of this book is to encourage believers to seek God as He desires to be sought. 
Salvation is not just about going to heaven. Certainly our destination is heaven, but our salvation has afforded us a relationship with God that is personal and intimate right now.
God's Word is both our terror and our hope; it both kills and makes alive. If we engage it in faith, humility, and obedience, it gives life, cleanses, feeds, and defends. If we close it in unbelief or ignore it or resist it, it will accuse us before the God who gave it. It is the living Word of God, coming like a fierce man of war with great power, and you and I dare not resist it, and we dare not argue it down. 
When asked to come and give a series of 10 lectures in defense of the Bible, C.H. Spurgeon wired back, "I won't come, the Bible needs no defense. Turn it loose and like a lion it will defend itself." I, too, believe that we do not need anybody defending the Word of God. We only need to preach it. 
How we define sin says a great deal about our understanding of, and commitment to, the Word of God.
This generation of Christians needs to understand that numbers do not make anything true. You can get a vast number of people to believe something, but if it was an error before they believed it, it is still an error after they have been convinced.
I believe the time is coming when evangelical Christians will not be able to take our Christianity as casually as we do now. The time is coming when we may have to stand up and be counted for the genuine thing. 
Every person is absolutely essential to the plan of God. 
Sometimes we are wont to take what God has done and make excuses. "Oh yes," someone might explain, "God said that, but He really didn't mean it that way." Then comes a long explanation of what that person thinks God really meant. If you have to explain it, you do not believe it. By faith, we can accept from God what we may not understand. That is the dynamic of faith. 
We must accept the Bible on its own terms and not make exceptions for someone who does not quite agree with everything in the Bible.
I solemnly vow before God Almighty that every day of my life, I will take the Bible as the most serious thing and adjust my life to its teachings.
Apart from Jesus, men stumble in the shadow of their own rebellion.
I must say right here that God never negotiates with men. Jesus Christ's death on the cross put an end to any kind of negotiations. It is now Christ or nothing. It is now God's Word in its entirety or nothing. 
The human heart does not take the naked truth at its face value. It always craves truth plus some additive that will make it more palatable. In our eagerness to reach men and women for Christ, we have sought to make truth palatable for the natural man. Not wanting to offend anybody, nor to appear judgmental, we try to make Bible truth fit the culture around us. 
Another lie that seems to continue unabated is that there is no hell. The people who are convinced that there is no hell are often the same ones who congratulate Jesus for being such a great teacher. Something is wrong here. Jesus, more than anyone else in Scripture, taught that there is a hell. It is inconsistent to call Him a good teacher and yet not believe that what He taught was true. 
Another lie that goes quite unchallenged is that God is too kind to punish. This brings into question God's laws. What are they for? Will God ignore His own laws? What is the purpose of God establishing laws? This lie suggests that God will put aside laws that He created from the foundation of the world and let people do as they please without any consequences. 
Baptizing a goat will not make him a sheep.
The key to overcoming the lies of the enemy is not simply knowing about the Bible; it is knowing the living Word, which is none other than the Lord Jesus Christ. 
The power of the Word of God is to show me where I am wrong. It does not stop there, however; it also works to revolutionize and convert me into the image of Christ... It convinces, persuades, and breaks down all resistance to the will of God. It is a power that goes beyond mere words--and it is a power that words cannot stand up against.
The power of worship is to create reverence... You will know that it is the power of God when Jesus Christ is exalted above all other things.
I pledge before Thee that I will not sing a song I am not willing to live. 
Truth is always very sweet at first. When we sing truth, it is very sweet. When we read it, it is very sweet. But when it takes over--when it begins to control us and determine our lives, and becomes to us a reflex, a second nature, a mastery impulse--then it becomes as bitter as gall to the carnal nature, because truth has consequences. 
The people of God ought to be people who have chewed the book, swallowed the book, digested the book, and absorbed the book until it has colored them and given them the right complexion... God's people are called to be heroic. They are called to ingest and work through even the difficult truths contained in God's Word.
The Lord has called us to be a spiritual people, a godly people, a committed people, a worshiping people, a people for His own possession, a peculiar people. Are we willing to allow His Word to make us into all those things?
What a joy it is to begin to know God as He desires to be known! I do not want the world to define God for me. I do not even want religion to define God for me. I want the Holy Spirit to reveal God to me through the exceedingly great and precious promises He has given to me... God's voice is embodied in His promises.
"I stand alone on the Word of God," is the most important truth that we can know.
A heretic is someone who selects the passages that he wants to believe... There is nothing right about someone who acts as if significant passages of Scripture did not exist.
© Becky Laney of Operation Actually Read Bible

Wednesday, May 22, 2013

Book Review: In The Steps of St. Paul

In The Steps of St. Paul. H.V. Morton. 1935. 528 pages.

With the exception of Jerome K. Jerome, I've not really read any travel books. In The Steps of St. Paul by H.V. Morton, readers get a chance to visit the Middle East as it was in the early 1930s. The book is conversational and quite pleasant. The book focuses on history, geography, archaeology, architectural design, politics, and biography.

Morton is "following" the journeys of the apostle, so some attention is given to providing summaries of Acts and Paul's epistles. Not so much focus that this book becomes commentary, but just enough to establish the purpose of the author's travels. 

It's evident that he was a traveler, that Morton greatly enjoyed traveling. And in this book, readers see his respect for the Bible and for history. He provides some cultural context for reading the Bible. 

 But the emphasis isn't solely on the past. It is a description of the modern day region--as it was when he visited in the early 1930s. The author provides historical background for the regions in which he's traveling, often covering several time periods. For example, he often discusses how the region has changed since the Great War (World War I). He also discusses several different crusades.

The book was interesting. I'm not sure it is a must-read for every believer. But it was a pleasant read, full of detail.

© Becky Laney of Operation Actually Read Bible

Tuesday, May 21, 2013

My Week With Spurgeon, Week #20

True prayer may be described as the soul rising from earth to have fellowship with heaven. ~ Charles Spurgeon, Treasury of David, Psalm 25
Faith is the cable which binds our boat to the shore, and by pulling at it we draw ourselves to the land; faith unites us to God, and then draws us near to him. As long as the anchor of faith holds there is no fear in the worst tempest; if that should fail us there would be no hope left. ~ Charles Spurgeon, Treasury of David, Psalm 25
Patience is the fair handmaid and daughter of faith; we cheerfully wait when we are certain that we shall not wait in vain. It is our duty and our privilege to wait upon the Lord in service, in worship, in expectancy, in trust all the days of our life. Our faith will be tried faith, and if it be of the true kind, it will bear continued trial without yielding. We shall not grow weary of waiting upon God if we remember how long and how graciously he once waited for us. ~ Charles Spurgeon, Treasury of David, Psalm 25
God himself will condescend to be the teacher of sinners. What a ragged school is this for God to teach in! God's teaching is practical; he teaches sinners not only the doctrine but the way. ~ Charles Spurgeon, Treasury of David, Psalm 25
He who fears God has nothing else to fear. ~ Charles Spurgeon, Treasury of David, Psalm 25

© Becky Laney of Operation Actually Read Bible

Sunday, May 19, 2013

Week Four, Treasury of Truth



Welcome to the mini-challenge, Treasury of Truth! I hope you benefit from reading, meditating, and studying the Word this month! Perhaps Bible reading isn't a daily part of your life, this would be a great opportunity to start! Here are the goals for this week:

Week four, May 19-May 25
Primary goal: read Psalm 139 five to seven times
Secondary goal: read Psalm 23 three to four times
Extra Credit: read John 13, 14, 15, 16, 17
Song of the Week: "I Will Rise" by Chris Tomlin (amazon mp3)

From Gospel: Recovering the Power That Made Christianity Revolutionary by J.D. Greear
Always "begin again" with the gospel. Abide in it; swim in it; make your home in it. See more and more of your life through it. Be absolutely convinced at every moment of every day of the goodness of God in your life. That's the only way you'll ever really grow. (22-3)
True love for God cannot grow when we are unsure about His feelings for us. (35)
Right now, if you are in Christ, when God looks at you--regardless of your situation--He sees the righteousness of Christ. If we really believed that--not only with our heads but also with our hearts--it would change everything in our lives. (47)
Each day Jesus says to us, "You are my beloved child. I am well pleased in you. Now live that way." Satan, on the other hand, says, "Look at you. Look at the condition of your circumstances. Look at how poorly you're living. There is no way you are God's beloved child." Which voice are you going to believe? There's an eternity of difference between them. (52)
Perhaps one of the reasons we fail to treasure God is we have such a limited view of Him. God is a God of such massive size that our minds cease questioning when we see Him. We tremble and believe. (93)
As we see the beauty of God and feel His weightiness in our hearts, our hearts begin to desire Him more than we desire sin. Before the Bible says, "Stop sinning," it says, "Behold your God." (97)
From Preparing For Jesus' Return by A.W. Tozer
It is essential that we learn how to read the Scriptures, to meditate upon the Scriptures and discipline ourselves in memorizing Scripture. It is absolutely essential that the Bible have top priority in our thought life. Nothing else should surpass the Scriptures. Everything we do should have roots in the Scripture. Our morning sessions with God over the Scriptures should set forth the pattern and temperament of our daily walk that day. We truly have not read the Bible until we have seen Jesus Christ. (197)
David would settle for nothing short of the face of God. Our problem today is that we usually settle for anything and everything but that shining face of God. The cost and inconvenience of pressing deep into His presence are too much for the kind of life we are living. (82)
From Jesus is Victor by A.W. Tozer
The question is this: What are we allowing the Word of God to say to us, and what is our reaction to that Word? Have we consumed and digested the book? Have we absorbed the Word of God into our lives? Or are we among those content to be a part of a Christian congregation where there are no extreme demands, where fellowship will be consistently pleasant and without responsibility? When we, as Christians, love our Lord Jesus Christ with heart and soul and mind, the Word of God is on our side! If we could only grasp the fact that God's Word is more than a book! It is the revelation of divine truth from the person of God Himself. It has come as a divine communication in the sacred Scriptures. It has come to us in the guidance and conviction imparted by the divine Spirit of God within our beings. It has been modeled for us in Jesus Christ, the incarnate Word and the eternal Son. (165)

© Becky Laney of Operation Actually Read Bible

Week in Review: May 12-18

NKJV

  • Ruth
  • Psalm 25
  • Psalm 139
  • Jeremiah 3-23
  • Matthew 1-2
  • Colossians


NEB

  • Job 18-42
  • Psalm 25
  • Psalm 139
  • Proverbs 6-27
  • Acts 3-28
  • Colossians
  • 1 Timothy
  • 2 Timothy
  • Hebrews


HCSB

  • Psalm 25
  • Psalm 139


NIV

  • Psalm 25
  • Psalm 139


ESV

  • Psalm 25
  • Psalm 139


RV 1885

  • Psalm 25
  • Psalm 139
  • Colossians


ASV 1901

  • Psalm 25
  • Psalm 139
  • Colossians


NASB

  • Psalm 25
  • Psalm 139


KJV

  • Psalm 25
  • Psalm 139
  • Colossians
  • Revelation


© Becky Laney of Operation Actually Read Bible

Friday, May 17, 2013

Another Poem Inspired by Psalm 139


O Lord, in me there lieth nought
But to thy search revealed lies;
For when I sit
Thou markest it;
No less thou notest when I rise;
Yea, closest closet of my thought
Hath open windows to thine eyes.

Thou walkest with me when I walk,
When to my bed for rest I go,
I find thee there,
And everywhere:
Not youngest thought in me doth grow,
No, not one word I cast to talk
But, yet unuttered, thou dost know.

If forth I march, thou goest before;
If back I turn, thou com'st behind:
So forth nor back
Thy guard I lack;
Nay, on me, too, thy hand I find.
Well, I thy wisdom may adore,
But never reach with earthly mind.

To shun thy notice, leave thine eye,
O whither might I take my way?
To starry sphere?
Thy throne is there.
To dead men's undelightsome stay?
There is thy walk, and there to lie
Unknown, in vain I should assay.

O sun, whom light nor flight can match!
Suppose thy lightful flightful wings
Thou lend to me,
And I could flee
As far as thee the evening brings:
Ev'n led to west he would me catch,
Nor should I lurk with western things.

Do thou thy best. O secret night,
In sable veil to cover me:
Thy sable veil
Shall vainly fail:
With day unmasked my night shall be;
For night is day, and darkness light,
O Father of all lights, to thee.

—Sir Philip Sidney, 1554-1586.
© Becky Laney of Operation Actually Read Bible

Thursday, May 16, 2013

Book Review: The Radical Cross

The Radical Cross.  A.W. Tozer. Christian Publications. 148 pages.

The Radical Cross would make a good devotional book. This little book contains thirty-one (relatively) short readings related (in one way or another) to the cross. There are seven main divisions: "The Radical Cross: Its Power," "The Radical Cross: Its Price," "The Radical Cross: Its Purpose," "The Radical Cross: Its Pain," "The Radical Cross: Its Provision," "The Radical Cross: Its Paradox," and "The Radical Cross: Its Promise." These entries mainly concern the Christian life and suffering: on how the Christian is not called to live a life of convenience and comfort, thinking only of one's self.

I would definitely recommend the works of A.W. Tozer. Some of Tozer I absolutely love; some Tozer I merely like. But there are gems to be found in all of his works. I love Tozer because he was passionately devoted to God; he treasured the Bible and preached boldly.

Favorite quotes:
The cross stands high above the opinions of men and to that cross all opinions must come at last for judgment. (4)
The changed attitude toward the cross that we see in modern orthodoxy proves not that God has changed, nor that Christ has eased up on His demand that we carry the cross; it means rather that current Christianity has moved away from the standards of the New Testament. So far have we moved indeed that it may take nothing short of a new reformation to restore the cross to its right place in the theology and life of the Church. (5)
Everybody has been or is under the sentence of death. (7)
When God justifies a sinner everything in God is on the sinner's side. All the attributes of God are on the sinner's side. (9)
Christ was born that He might become a man and became a man that He might give His life as a ransom for many. Neither the birth nor the dying were ends in themselves. As He was born to die, so did He die that He might atone, and rise that He might justify freely all who take refuge in Him. His birth and His death are history. His appearance at the mercy seat is not history past, but a present, continuing fact, to the instructed Christian the most glorious fact his trusting heart can entertain. (12)
Christianity embraces everything that touches the life of man and deals with it all effectively. Because suffering is a real part of human life. Christ Himself took part in the same and learned obedience by the things which He suffered. It is not possible that the afflicted saint should feel a stab of pain to which Christ is a stranger. (62)
The work of Christ on the cross did not influence God to love us, did not increase that love by one degree, did not open any fount of grace or mercy in His heart. He had loved us from old eternity and needed nothing to stimulate that love. The cross is not responsible for God's love; rather it was His love which conceived the cross as the one method by which we could be saved. God felt no different toward us after Christ had died for us, for in the mind of God Christ had already died before the foundation of the world. God never saw us except through atonement. The human race could not have existed one day in its fallen state had not Christ spread His mantle of atonement over it. And this He did in eternal purpose long ages before they led Him out to die on the hill above Jerusalem. All God's dealings with man have been conditioned upon the cross. (118)
Here are two important truths. The first truth is that no one ever was saved, no one is now saved, and no one ever will be saved except by grace. The second truth is that grace always comes by Jesus Christ. The law was given by Moses, but grace came by Jesus Christ. This does not mean that before Jesus was born of Mary there was no grace. God dealt in grace with mankind, looking forward to the Incarnation and death of Jesus before Christ came. Now, since He's come and gone to the Father's right hand, God looks back upon the cross as we look back upon the cross. Everybody from Abel on was saved by looking forward to the cross. Grace came by Jesus Christ. And everybody that's been saved since the cross is saved by looking back at the cross. Grace always comes by Jesus Christ. It didn't come at His birth, but it came in God's ancient plan. (120-1)

© Becky Laney of Operation Actually Read Bible

Wednesday, May 15, 2013

Book Review: Revelation Chapters 14-22

Revelation 14-22 (Thru the Bible Commentary Series) J. Vernon McGee. Thomas Nelson. 204 pages.

I have finally completed reading all three volumes of J. Vernon McGee's "commentary" on Revelation! (The first volume covered Revelation 1-5. The second volume covered Revelation 6-13).) Overall, I have enjoyed these books. I haven't always agreed with every single sentence or every single paragraph. But his insights have been at times thought-provoking or fascinating. The third volume focuses on the very end of the tribulation. It also covers the millennial reign of Christ and the New Jerusalem. 

Favorite quotes:
Let me make it clear that I make no apology for these scenes of judgment. God has not asked me to apologize for His Word. He has told me to give it out. We need to face up to the facts:1. Sin is an awful thing.2. Sin is in the world.3. You and I are sinners. The only remedy for sin is the redemption Christ offered when He shed His blood on the cross and paid the penalty for our sins.4. You and I merit the judgment of God. Our only escape is to accept the work of Christ for us on Calvary's cross. (52-53)
What God is doing may not look right to you, but if you don't think God is doing the right thing, you are wrong, not God. We need to adjust our attitudes and our thinking. (65)
As we contemplate the destruction of Babylon, we think of other great cities and civilizations of the past which have fallen. One of the most widely read books of all times is The Decline and Fall of the Roman Empire by Edward Gibbon in 1788. In it he gives five basic reasons why that great civilization withered and died:1) The undermining of the dignity and sanctity of the home, which is the basis for human society.2) Higher and higher taxes; the spending of public money for free bread and circuses for the populace.3) The mad craze for pleasure; sports becoming every year more exciting, more brutal, more immoral.4) The building of great armaments when the real enemy was within--the decay of individual responsibility.5) The decay of religion; faith fading into mere form, losing touch with life, losing power to guide the people. (117)
My friend, learning to know Him is one of the things that is going to make heaven heaven. He is so wonderful that it is going to take the rest of eternity to really know Him. The folk we meet down here are not very exciting folk when we get to know them, are they? But the more we know Jesus, the more exciting He will be. (134)

© Becky Laney of Operation Actually Read Bible

Tuesday, May 14, 2013

My Year With Spurgeon, Week #19

God's all cannot be praised with less than our all. ~ Charles Spurgeon, Treasury of David, Psalm 103
Here David begins his list of blessings received, which he rehearses as themes and arguments for praise. He selects a few of the choicest pearls from the casket of divine love, threads them on the string of memory, and hangs them about the neck of gratitude. Pardoned sin is, in our experience, one of the choicest boons of grace, one of the earliest gifts of mercy,—in fact, the needful preparation for enjoying all that follows it. Till iniquity is forgiven, healing, redemption, and satisfaction are unknown blessings.  ~ Charles Spurgeon, Treasury of David, Psalm 103
By purchase and by power the Lord redeems us from the spiritual death into which we had fallen, and from the eternal death which would have been its consequence. ~ Charles Spurgeon, Treasury of David, Psalm 103
Redemption will ever constitute one of the sweetest notes in the believer's grateful song. ~ Charles Spurgeon, Treasury of David, Psalm 103
Mercy pardons sin, grace bestows favour: in both the Lord abounds. ~ Charles Spurgeon, Treasury of David, Psalm 103
As far as the east is from the west, so far hath he removed our transgressions from us. O glorious verse, no word even upon the inspired page can excel it! Sin is removed from us by a miracle of love! What a load to move, and yet is it removed so far that the distance is incalculable. Fly as far as the wing of imagination can bear you, and if you journey through space eastward, you are further from the west at every beat of your wing. If sin be removed so far, then we may be sure that the scent, the trace, the very memory of it must be entirely gone. If this be the distance of its removal, there is no shade of fear of its ever being brought back again; even Satan himself could not achieve such a task. Our sins are gone, Jesus has borne them away. ~ Charles Spurgeon, Treasury of David, Psalm 103

© Becky Laney of Operation Actually Read Bible

Monday, May 13, 2013

Book Review: The Sovereignty and Supremacy of King Jesus

The Sovereignty and Supremacy of King Jesus: Bowing to the Gracious Despot. Mike Abendroth. 2011. Day One. 240 pages.

I have listened to Mike Abendroth's sermons for over five years now. I love, love, love listening to his sermons, so my expectations were high when I discovered he had a book! I love books that celebrate the sovereignty of God. I do. I LOVE this doctrine.  This book is about God's sovereignty; it touches on the "lordship" controversy, though he prefers to look at it as more of a kingship issue. Do you recognize the kingship of God? Do you recognize his right to rule? Do you recognize his authority and supremacy? God is King. The Bible reveals Him to be King, or King of Kings.

From the introduction: "In this book, I will introduce you to many of the essential facts about God as described by Himself in the Bible. This particular aspect of God--supreme Ruler and King--lends itself to our allegiance, submission, and repentance. There is only one God and King, and that means that all other gods are impostors, frauds, and charlatans."

Favorite quotes:
In our day, people are attempting to protect God from what the Bible says about Him. (27)
You cannot put one little star in motion,
You cannot shape one single forest leaf,
nor fling a mountain up, nor sink an ocean,
presumptuous pigmy, large with unbelief!
You cannot bring one dawn of regal splendor,
nor bid the day to shadowy twilight fall,
nor send the pale moon forth with radiance tender;
and dare you doubt the One who has done it all?
~ Ella Wheeler Wilcox (33)
God is God by name, but also by His mind and purpose. (49)
"There is not a square inch in the whole domain of human existence over which Christ, who is sovereign over all, does not cry, 'Mine!'" ~ Abraham Kuyper (61)
Calvin believed, "Ignorance of Sovereignty is the ultimate of all miseries; the highest blessedness lies in the knowledge of it." (65)
There is nothing about you that was not sovereignly decided upon by the triune God. Nothing. (75)
"Is it not God who gives the disposition to believe? Is it wrong for God to give grace? If it be right for Him to give it, is it wrong for Him to purpose to give it? Would you have Him give it by accident?" ~ Charles Spurgeon (82)
The King's message should not be delivered with a whimper. (124)
A man in Kansas City was severely injured in an explosion. Evangelist Robert L. Sumner tells about him in his book The Wonders of the Word of God. The victim's face was badly disfigured, and he lost his eyesight as well as both hands. He was just a new Christian, and one of his greatest disappointments was that he could no longer read the Bible. Then he heard about a lady in England who read Braille with her lips. Hoping to do the same, he sent for some books of the Bible in Braille. Much to his dismay, however, he discovered that the nerve endings in his lips had been destroyed by the explosion. One day, as he brought one of the Braille pages to his lips, his tongue happened to touch a few of the raised characters and he could feel them. Like a flash he thought, I can read the Bible using my tongue. At the time Robert Sumner wrote his book, the man had "read" through the entire Bible four times. (140)
Election elicits praise. Like a tea kettle about to whistle when the water is at a boil, your heart and soul should be ready to cry out with admiration and thankfulness because of the Spirit's work in your heart. (172)

© Becky Laney of Operation Actually Read Bible