7. Poems and Prayers for the Very Young

7. Poems and Prayers for the Very Young. Martha Alexander (compiler and illustrator). 1973. Random House. 24 pages. [Source: Bought] [3 stars, vintage picture book, poetry]

First sentence: I wake in the morning early

And always, the very first thing,

I poke out my head and I sit up in bed

And I sing and I sing and I sing.

I enjoy collecting vintage picture books. This one has a slightly Christian theme. I would say ninety percent celebrate nature and common joys in life and ten percent give a nod to God. It does include the Lord's Prayer and a few other familiar poem-prayers that you might have heard depending on your background.

I think it is a lovely-enough collection of poems. The poems aren't so religious and "Christian" that you are in any way teaching your children theology. But the poems are pleasant enough and not anti-Christian either. 

I definitely liked the soft, soothing illustrations.

© Becky Laney of Operation Actually Read Bible

2. New American Standard Bible (1973)

New American Standard Reference Edition. 1973. God. 1899 pages. [Source: Bought]

First sentence: In the beginning God created the heavens and the earth. 

This was my third time to read the 1973 text edition of the New American Standard Bible. The NASB is published by the Lockman Foundation. I have read several other text editions of the NASB: 1971, 1973, 1977, 1995, and 2020. The two that I keep coming back to again and again and again and again are the 1977 and 1995. Still, I find the 1973 irresistible when I find it at a thrift shop. 

The 1973 is long out of print. While you can still buy brand new copies of the 1977 text edition, the 1971 and 1973 have not stayed "in print." If you don't have it in your collection, it isn't a huge deal. The 1977 can satisfy all your vintage needs. In terms of thee and thou, etc. 

The copies I have found have all been single column with side column references. Also verse by verse. Also black letter.  I've also only ever found copies that have notes, underlinings, and other markings. I've never found a "clean" copy. This has given me the freedom to mark it in myself. It also shows me that previous owners have found the NASB helpful and good. 

My start date: January 14, 2024. My end date: February 13, 2024.

PSALM 23

The LORD is my shepherd,

I shall not want.

He makes me lie down in green pastures;

He leads me beside quiet waters.

He restores my soul;

He guides me in the paths of righteousness

For His name's sake.

Even though I walk through the valley of the shadow of death,

I fear no evil: for Thou art with me;

Thy rod and Thy staff, they comfort me.

Thou dost prepare a table before me in the presence of my enemies;

Thou hast anointed my head with oil;

My cup overflows.

Surely goodness and lovingkindness will follow me all the days of my life,

And I will dwell in the house of the LORD forever.

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 eternal life.

© Becky Laney of Operation Actually Read Bible

5.33 New International Version New Testament with Study Helps

New Testament with Study Helps: New International Version. God. 1973/1976. 489 pages. [Source: Bought]

First sentence: A record of the genealogy of Jesus Christ, son of David, son of Abraham: Abraham was the father of Isaac, Isaac the father of Jacob, Jacob the father of Judah and his brothers, Judah was the father of Perez and Zerah, whose mother was Tamar, Perez was the father of Hezron, Hezron the father of Ram,

I am a BIG fan of the NIV 1984 version. I am. It's what I grew up reading. From fourth grade through senior year--this translation was my primary translation. It was the translation I memorized verses and passages. Before it was available as a whole Bible, however, it released as a New Testament. This is the New Testament forerunner. (There is a whole Bible NIV that came out in 1978 as well. The 1984 revision "stuck" until 2011. Let's not talk about 2011. Some of us are still bitter.) 

I got it for around two dollars at my local charity shop. It looked well loved. The condition isn't the absolute best. But I thought for two dollars, it would hold up for at least one read through. (It did. It required extra hand support when reading Acts (the center point) but it held up.) 

It is single column. It is black letter. It is definitely out of print. That being said, I think it can be found if you are patient and visit lots of thrift stores and/or search for it online. As far as I know, this 1973 text of the New International Version is not available online.

Romans 3:23-26 (1973)

for all have sinned and fall short of the glory of God, and are justified freely by his grace through the redemption that came by Christ Jesus. God presented him as a sacrifice of atonement, through faith in his blood. He did this to demonstrate his justice, because in his forebearance he had left the sins committed beforehand unpunished--he did it to demonstrate his justice at the present time, so as to be just and the one who justifies the man who has faith in Jesus. 

Romans 3:23-26 (2011)

for all have sinned and fall short of the glory of God, and all are justified freely by his grace through the redemption that came by Christ Jesus. God presented Christ as a sacrifice of atonement, through the shedding of his blood—to be received by faith. He did this to demonstrate his righteousness, because in his forbearance he had left the sins committed beforehand unpunished— he did it to demonstrate his righteousness at the present time, so as to be just and the one who justifies those who have faith in Jesus.

© Becky Laney of Operation Actually Read Bible

1. New American Standard (1973)

New American Standard Reference Edition. 1973. God. 1899 pages. [Source: Bought]

First sentence: In the beginning God created the heavens and the earth. 

I bought the 1973 New American Standard Bible at a friends of the library book sale in either late February 2020 or early March 2020. (In other words, my last purchase--Bible or not--before the world turned upside down.) I only paid a few dollars--$2 at most. It was not in the best of shape. (I know of one previous owner, who wrote notes in large bubbly print as only the young and girlish can.) After a glue job, this one was ready to be read. Still, I don't know if it would hold up to a second, third, or fourth reading.

I started reading it in December 2020 for a Bible in 90 Days project. I failed the 90 days. It was more like Bible in 80 days. 

It is the first Bible I finished in 2021. 

PSALM 23

The LORD is my shepherd,

I shall not want.

He makes me lie down in green pastures;

He leads me beside quiet waters.

He restores my soul;

He guides me in the paths of righteousness

For His name's sake.

Even though I walk through the valley of the shadow of death,

I fear no evil: for Thou art with me;

Thy rod and Thy staff, they comfort me.

Thou dost prepare a table before me in the presence of my enemies;

Thou hast anointed my head with oil;

My cup overflows.

Surely goodness and lovingkindness will follow me all the days of my life,

And I will dwell in the house of the LORD forever.

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 eternal life.

What do you need to know about it?

1) It's out of print and long out of print. Lockman is unlikely to reprint the 1971 or the 1973 editions of the New American Standard Bible. Though the 1977 can be found now and then newly published. IF you want to find the 1973, used is the only way to get it I'd imagine.
2) It is a REFERENCE edition. Cross references are found on the side--the outside side as opposed to the center column. Those that love side column references, this one is great!
3) It features at least 25 completely blank pages. I don't know what note-takers would consider generous (versus stingy) in terms of blank pages and space to write...but I thought it was generous all things considered. I don't know of any (non-note-taker, non-journaling) modern Bibles that offer so much room for writing.
4) It is verse by verse. I know some Bible readers would rejoice over this verse by verse format. New paragraphs are noted by a bold verse number.
5) It is black letter. It does NOT present the Words of Christ in red. (Again there was much rejoicing...at least by some).
6) I don't have a font size; but if I had to guess I'd say somewhere between 8 and 9. That's a complete guess on my part. It's not overly large font but it wasn't hard to read. The paper wasn't amazing, but it wasn't horrible for bleed-through either. Nice in-between neither great nor horrible.
7) The 'bells and whistles' of this one: 

*foreword
*Fourfold Aim of the Lockman Foundation
*Preface to the New American Standard Bible
*Explanation of General Format
*Old Testament Table of Contents
*New Testament Table of Contents
*Concordance (115 pages)
*16 color maps

© Becky Laney of Operation Actually Read Bible

57. Matthew 14-28

Matthew 14-28 (Thru the Bible #35) J. Vernon McGee. 1973. 204 pages. [Source: Bought]

First sentence: Chapter 14 Theme: The forerunner, John the Baptist, is beheaded; Jesus withdraws but is followed by the multitude; He feeds the five thousand and sends His disciples over the sea into a storm, then walks on the water to them.

I am reading the Bible in 2020 using the daily M'Cheyne (Robert Murray M'Cheyne) plan. I thought it would add a layer of substance to in addition to the four chapters a day, to also read commentaries for those chapters. For that I am using Matthew Henry's Commentary on the Whole Bible. But the plan goes through the New Testament (and Psalms, I believe) twice. So now that I've finished Henry's commentary for the New Testament, I am tackling the New Testament commentary section of J. Vernon McGee's series.

This is not my first time reading J. Vernon McGee. I've read twelve or so of his commentaries. (Most recently his volume on Matthew 1-13). Overall, I like his laidback, casual, straightforward, tell it like it is approach to teaching Scripture. There is something so grounded and down to earth about him. Each reader is "his" friend. It's hard not to feel like he is a friend too.

One of the things that I love about McGee's commentaries is that he just speaks timeless truths. 

We fail to realize that the solutions today are not in government nor in human imaginations but in God.

Unbelief is sin. I am willing to make this confession: I wish that I believed Him more. He is worthy to be believed; I ought to believe Him fully, but the problem is with me. And I suspect that the problem is with you, also.

My friend, these are the two things that all of us have to be clear on in order to be Christians. We have to know who He is, and we have to know what He did. We need to know these things in order that we might exercise faith and be saved.

Only the Holy Spirit can make Christ known to any person. No man today can call Jesus “Lord” but by the Holy Spirit. Only the Spirit of God can take the things of Christ and reveal them to us.

We have a responsibility today to give out the gospel because it is the only thing that can save people. This is a tremendous revelation. Who is sufficient for these things? You and I have a responsibility that is awesome indeed!

It is satanic for anyone to deny the facts of the gospel which are that Jesus died on the cross for our sins, was buried, and rose again from the dead. It is satanic when a man in the pulpit will deny these truths. The substitutionary death of Christ is the only thing that can save us, my friend.Many people interpret this verse, “Let him deny himself ice cream” or “Let him deny himself some luxury down here.” What this verse says is “Let him deny himself!” You already know that the hardest person in the world to deny is yourself. To deny myself dessert is hard enough, but to deny myself is difficult indeed.

To deny myself is to put self out of the picture and to put Christ in the place of self. “And take up his cross, and follow me.” We are not to take up Christ’s cross but our own cross. There is a cross for you and a cross for me—that is, if we are going to follow Him.

Do you want a good motto for your life? I suggest these two words: Jesus only. He is the One who is the authority. I hope you will mark those two words, Jesus only, in your Bible.

I am afraid that our school systems are using our children as guinea pigs for humanistic philosophies. Young people are paying an awful price in the contemporary schoolroom. My friend, we have a tremendous responsibility before God in this area.

If God forgave our sins in the same way we forgive others, none of us would be forgiven. But after we have become children of God, because we have been forgiven, we are to forgive.

My friend, when you come to the Lord Jesus Christ, you must tell Him your need. If you are coming to Him for salvation, you must tell Him that you are a sinner and need His salvation. If you don’t, you will not be saved. That’s the offense of the cross. Everybody would like to come to the cross if they could bring along the perfume of their self-righteousness and good deeds. But, my friend, you and I haven’t any goodness at all, none whatsoever, to present to God. You can no more sweeten human character with training and psychology and education than you can sweeten a pile of fertilizer out in the barnyard with Chanel No. 5. We have to come to Him as sinners and receive Him as our Savior.Many people have joined the church and are religious and think they are Christians, but they are not. They can perform their church rituals and give mental assent to the doctrines, but they are not genuine believers unless there has been a transformation in their lives.

Here we see the gentle Jesus using the harshest language that is in the entire Word of God. No prophet of the Old Testament denounced sin as the Lord Jesus denounces it. Here in Southern California this section was called to the attention of a liberal preacher. He didn’t even know it was in the Bible—he had never read the Bible! In our day there is a misunderstanding of who the Lord Jesus really is. Liberalism gives the impression that all He ever talked about was love. One of the banners that was carried about in a protest march in Berkeley a number of years ago bore the slogan “Jesus Yes, Church No.” A senator from Oregon made a great deal of that, maintaining that the church is giving the wrong impression, that this generation wants Jesus, but that they don’t want the church as it is. Well, I agree that the church in general is giving the wrong impression, but the main problem is that they have really misunderstood who Jesus is. He is not the “lovechild” that the liberal thinks He is. Certainly it is true that He loves sinners and died for sinners, but also He is going to judge sinners. We need to have a correct perspective of Him. Therefore, He is the One who is misunderstood in our day.

The Lord is speaking in harsh terms in these verses in Matthew. He is serving a cup of tea that is a little too strong for a great many of the liberal-minded folk of this present hour. Jesus Christ was no love child. He came to earth to die for your sins because He loved you, but if you reject Him, He becomes your Judge.

The arch of the gospel rests upon two great pillars: (1) the death of Christ, and (2) the resurrection of Christ.

© Becky Laney of Operation Actually Read Bible

56. Matthew 1-13

Matthew 1-13 (Thru the Bible #34) J. Vernon McGee. 1973. 204 pages. [Source: Bought]

First sentence: The Gospel According to Matthew Introduction The Gospel of Matthew, although it is only twenty-eight chapters long, is a very important book. In fact, Genesis and Matthew are the two key books of the Bible.

I am reading the Bible in 2020 using the daily M'Cheyne (Robert Murray M'Cheyne) plan. I thought it would add a layer of substance to in addition to the four chapters a day, to also read commentaries for those chapters. For that I am using Matthew Henry's Commentary on the Whole Bible. But the plan goes through the New Testament (and Psalms, I believe) twice. So now that I've finished Henry's commentary for the New Testament, I am tackling the New Testament commentary section of J. Vernon McGee's series.

This is not my first time reading J. Vernon McGee. I've read twelve or so of his commentaries. Overall, I like his laidback, casual, straightforward, tell it like it is approach to teaching Scripture. There is something so grounded and down to earth about him. Each reader is "his" friend. It's hard not to feel like he is a friend too.

From the introduction:

My friend, there is a danger of just wanting the information and the knowledge from the Bible but failing to translate it into shoe leather, not letting it become part of our lives. Through study we can learn the basic facts of Scripture, and all the theological truth contained in it, without allowing the Word of God to take possession of our hearts. 

and

There is still a crying out today from a world that needs a Deliverer. The religious man needs Christ and not religion. The man of power needs a Savior who has the power to save him. The thinking man needs One who can meet all his mental and spiritual needs. And certainly the wretched man needs to know about a Savior who not only can save him but build him up so that he can live for God.

McGee on repentance:

“Repent” is an expression that always has been given to God’s people as a challenge to turn around. “Repent” in the original Greek is metanoia, meaning “to change your mind.” You are going in one direction; turn around and go in another direction. Repentance is primarily, I think, for saved people, that is, for God’s people in any age. They are the ones who, when they become cold and indifferent, are to turn. That was the message to the seven churches of Asia Minor in Revelation 2 and 3, and it was the message of the Lord Jesus Himself. Someone may ask whether the unsaved man is supposed to repent. The unsaved man is told that he is to believe on the Lord Jesus Christ. That was the message of Paul to the jailer at Philippi (see Acts 16:31). That old rascal needed to do some repenting; but when an unsaved man believes in Jesus, he is repenting. Faith means to turn to Christ, and when you turn to Christ, you must also turn from something. If you don’t turn from something, then you aren’t really turning to Christ. So repentance is really a part of believing, but the primary message that should be given to the lost today is that they should believe in the Lord Jesus Christ. We like to see folk come forward in a service to receive Christ or sign a card signifying that they have made that decision, but the important thing is to trust Christ as your Savior, and if you really turn to Him, you turn from something else.

McGee speaking truth about Matthew 4:

Why is it that many of us are having trouble living the Christian life? May I say this very kindly: It is ignorance of the Word of God. Notice that our Lord always answered by giving the Word of God. I believe that the Word of God has an answer for your particular problem. That doesn’t mean that I know the answer for your problem. It doesn’t mean that your psychologist or psychiatrist knows the answer for your problem. But God has an answer for your problem, and it is in His Word. That is the reason we should know the Book better than we do.

Every time His answer was, “It is written.” Oh, my friend, if only we were more adept at using the sword of the Spirit! It is our weapon in this day, and it is a very effective weapon.

The Devil was pretty good at quoting Scripture, but he wasn’t quite accurate. Shakespeare said that the Devil could quote Scripture for his purpose; but, actually, the Devil can misquote Scripture for his purpose.

McGee on the Sermon on the Mount:

There are two things I would like to say by way of introduction to this section. One is that the far right and the far left are not confined to politics, but among theologians who expound Scripture we also have the far left and the far right. This is vividly revealed in the understanding of the Sermon on the Mount. The liberal theologian is to the far left. He treats the Sermon on the Mount as the gospel, the Good News. He acts (even if he doesn’t say it) as if it were the only important part of Scripture.

“Therefore all things whatsoever ye would that men should do to you, do ye even so to them: for this is the law and the prophets.” To say that this is all the Bible you need may sound good, but it is pious drivel. The question is not whether you feel that the Sermon on the Mount is your religion. The question is: Are you living it? That is the important thing, and we’ll have more to say about that later.

My friend, the gospel is not in the Sermon on the Mount, and that is the reason a great many people like to claim it as their religion. The preaching of that doctrine has made more hypocrites in the church than anything else. It is nothing in the world but verbiage for men to say, “I live by the Sermon on the Mount.” If a man is honest and will read the Sermon on the Mount, he will know that he is not living up to it. My friend, if the Sermon on the Mount is God’s standard (and it is) and you come short of it, what are you going to do? Do you have a Savior who can extend mercy to you? Do you know the One who can reach down in grace and save you when you put your faith in Him?

There is also the extreme right point of view. This group treats the Sermon on the Mount as if it were the bubonic plague. They have nothing to do with it.

It is true that there is no gospel in the Sermon on the Mount, and it is tragic indeed to give it to unregenerate man as a standard of conduct, and to tell him that if he tries to measure up to it, he is a Christian. The Sermon on the Mount is Law lifted to the nth degree. Man could not keep the Law in the Old Testament. So how in the world can he keep, in his own strength, the Sermon on the Mount which is elevated to an even higher degree?

What you have in the Sermon on the Mount is a marvelous electric light bulb, but you do not have the generator that produces the power that will make the light.

The Sermon on the Mount needs to be preached to bring conviction to the hearts of men. This document lets men know that they have sinned, and it reveals that none are righteous and that all have come short of God’s glory. The Christian can take the principles set down in the Sermon on the Mount and consider them in the light of other Scriptures. This will provide a wider view and a better understanding of the mind of Christ.

It is well to note that they are be-atitudes, not do-attitudes. They state what the subjects of the kingdom are—they are the type of person described in the Beatitudes.

We have no light within ourselves, but the Word of God is light. Being a light means giving out the Word of God in one way or another. This doesn’t mean that you should be quoting Scripture all the time, but it does mean that you are to share the light that God has given you.

The Sermon on the Mount ought to drive you to the cross of Christ where you cry out for mercy. To do that is to honor the Law, my friend. Don’t try to kid me into thinking that you are keeping it. I know you’re not—because you are just like I am.

We are commanded to love all believers, and we express our love to our enemies by getting the gospel to them, giving them the message of God’s saving grace that is able to bring them to heaven.

As someone has said, Today is the tomorrow that we worried about yesterday. How true that is for many of us!

To judge can mean “to decide, to distinguish, to condemn, to avenge,” and it actually can mean “to damn.” These verses do not mean that a child of God is forbidden to judge others, but it does mean that we are not to judge the inward motives of others in the sense of condemning them. We do not know or understand why a brother in Christ does a certain thing.

you and I need to recognize that we have nothing worthwhile to say unless it is with the authority of the Word of God and unless we believe it is the Word of God.

What we ask is not always the Lord’s will, friend. But if it is His will, He can do it. It is most important that the will of God comes first. It may be easy for you, but it is difficult for me to put the will of God first. I put it like this, “Lord, will You do this because I want You to do it?” But the leper says, “I know You can, but will You?” That is, is it according to Your will? This is a little different from what we hear folk pray today when they demand that the Lord do certain things. May I say to you, friend, let Him decide—and that’s the way it is going to be done anyway.

My friend, sin is too heavy for you to carry—you’ll really get a hernia if you try to carry your load of sin! The only place in the world to put that burden is at the cross of Christ. He bore it for you, and He invites you to come and bring your burden of sin to Him. He can forgive you because on the cross He bore the burden of your sin.

There is no sin committed yesterday that the Lord would not forgive today because He died for all sin. The Holy Spirit came into the world to make real the salvation of Christ to the hearts of men. If you resist the working of the Spirit of God when He speaks to you, my friend, there is no forgiveness, of course.

My friend, you can quit doing many things, but that won’t make you a Christian. If everyone in the world would quit sinning right now, there wouldn’t be any more Christians in the next minute or in the next day, because quitting sin doesn’t make Christians.

© Becky Laney of Operation Actually Read Bible

Book Review: Renewing Your Mind

Renewing Your Mind: Basic Christian Beliefs You Need To Know. R.C. Sproul. 1973/1998. 218 pages. [Source; Bought]

First sentence: When a person embraces the Christian faith and says with assurance, "I believe...," that person has truly embarked upon life.

In The Prayer of the Lord, R.C. Sproul provided commentary on the Lord's Prayer. In Renewing Your Mind, R.C. Sproul provides commentary on the Apostle's Creed. Sproul walks believers--whether new or old--through each line of the ancient creed.

It is a thoughtful introduction or reintroduction to the essentials of the faith. These beliefs--these doctrines--form the core of Christian belief and should inform our practice. These doctrines should renew our minds as we grow in the faith.

R.C. Sproul writes, "This book is about living that life to the fullest, about renewing your mind so that your thinking conforms to the mind of Christ. Our spiritual creation in Christ inaugurates an intellectual and emotional creation, but does not complete it. Some old thought patterns and philosophical assumptions remain. To deal with those we need to move our metaphor of the Christian life from the nursery to boot camp. Now comes basic training in righteousness, the hard work of truth calisthenics to develop strong, disciplined faith muscles."

I would recommend this one! Here are some of my favorite quotes:

The Holy Spirit does not call us to faith in general, but to faith in particular--to faith in the person and work of Jesus Christ. (19)

Healing and prosperity are not God's purposes in "I believe..." faith. They are not God's promises. In fact, the Bible promises over and over that Christians will suffer many things. Suffering allows us to share in the humiliation and suffering of our Lord; pain makes us more effective witnesses and more mature lovers of God, dependent on him for strength. (23)

We came from somewhere significant and we are headed toward a destination of importance. (55)

The only basis for Christian hope lies in the believer's participation in the Man of Sorrows and Christus Victor--the triumph of Christ. (115)

© Becky Laney of Operation Actually Read Bible

Book Review: Knowing God

Knowing God. J.I. Packer. 1973/1993. Intervarsity Press. 286 pages. [Source: Bought]

Knowing God was the very first theology book I ever read, and I read it back in college days. It has been a while--quite a while--since I last read it. So it was great for me to revisit with a past favorite. If you haven't read J.I. Packer, Knowing God is probably the one that you need to pick up first. It is an excellent book.

The book is divided into three sections: "Know the Lord," "Behold Your God!", and "If God Be For Us…"

The first section includes, "The Study of God," "The People Who Know Their God," "Knowing and Being Known," "The Only True God," "God Incarnate," and "He Shall Testify."

The second section includes, "God Unchanging," "The Majesty of God," "God Only Wise," "God's Wisdom and Ours," "Thy Word Is Truth," "The Love of God," "The Grace of God," "God the Judge," "The Wrath of God," "Goodness and Severity," and "The Jealous God."

The third section includes, "The Heart of the Gospel," "Sons of God," "Thou Our Guide," "These Inward Trials," and "The Adequacy of God."

Knowing God is an engaging, challenging read. Challenging in a good way. The book offers readers plenty to think about in a wide range of subjects touching on how to live the Christian life. It also answers essential questions. Questions like:

Who is God?
How can I know God?
What is sin?
What is the gospel?
What is grace?
How can I be saved?
What am I saved from? and saved for?
What is justification?
What is propitiation?
What does it mean to be a Christian?

And these are just for starters. Knowing God is packed with information that believers of all ages need to know.

I highly recommend this one! I'll be sharing quotes in another post.

© Becky Laney of Operation Actually Read Bible