Dear Subscribers,
I hope you're well right now.
Today is my 7th wedding anniversary! I'm extraordinarily blessed to have a wonderful wife like Sarine and I'm happy to say we are more in love now than we have ever been. I can testify that Proverb 18:22 is certainly true. "He who finds a wife finds a good thing and obtains favor from the Lord."
On Sunday, God laid it on my heart to consider writing a Bible commentary. I really like this idea and want to do it, but I need to complete another project first. Please pray that I can make time to begin this endeavor. I'll probably start in the book of Matthew.
The creation/evolution controversy is coming to the silver screen! A movie called, "Expelled" will be released nationwide on April 18, 2008 and it exposes the media and the evolutionists who have tried to silence creation design proponents. Answers in Genesis is promoting the movie because it documents some interesting facts about creation in public schools. Please visit the web site and find it playing in a theater near you.
The Christian rock band P.O.D. releases a new album on Tuesday. It's called, "When Angels and Serpents Dance." Their Satellite album was amazing, so I hope this one can live up to it.
Welcome to the new readers of this message! Here is your Devotion, some Cool Facts, A Moment of Introspection, JCSM's Challenge, the Word of the Week, a faith-builder from "The Skeptic's Annotated Bible: Corrected and Explained," and the Quotes of the Week. Have a fantastic week and God bless you!
Love in Christ,
Jason Gastrich, Ph.D.
Contact Us: http://jcsm.org/contact.php
JCSM's Weekly Devotions (click here to listen!)
John 19:30 "So when Jesus had received the sour wine, He said, 'It is finished!' And bowing His head, He gave up His spirit."
Mark 15:37-39 "And Jesus cried out with a loud voice, and breathed His last. Then the veil of the temple was torn in two from top to bottom. So when the centurion, who stood opposite Him, saw that He cried out like this and breathed His last, he said, 'Truly this Man was the Son of God!'"
Matthew 27:52, 53 ". . . and the graves were opened; and many bodies of the saints who had fallen asleep were raised; and coming out of the graves after His resurrection, they went into the holy city and appeared to many."
Romans 14:9 "For to this end Christ died and rose and lived again, that He might be Lord of both the dead and the living."
Insight: Jesus Christ said, "It is finished" when He died on the cross for our sins. His work was complete and it was emphasized by several miraculous events. Know that Jesus came to do what He intended to do and that we are now responsible to have faith and glorify Him with our actions.
Prayer: "Dear Lord, bless us and make us like You. Thank you for being our Lord and Savior. There is no other like You! Thank you for dying on the cross for our sins. Help us to understand how much You love us and how much we don't deserve your love, mercy, and grace. Help us to be like You. Forgive our sins and purify us. In Jesus' name, Amen."
On February 8th, 1693, the College of William and Mary was the second college founded in the United States, after Harvard was chartered today in Williamsburg, Virginia. The founders stated three original purposes for the school. First, the youth of Virginia should be well-educated for learning good morals. Second, the school should supply good ministers to Virginia. Third, the Indians of America should have an opportunity at the school to be instructed in Christianity. Many older schools in the United States began with similar Christian ideals in mind.
This excerpt was taken from Donald DeYoung's book called, "365 Fascinating Facts From the World of Discovery."
Commit to love and lead all people in an honorable way.
Evangelize the next time you hear someone use God's name in vain. Most people know the scripture that says we shouldn't take God's name in vain. You can remind them and strike up a conversation about the interesting dichotomy in that verse. It could be referring to saying or speaking God's name in vain, but it could also be referring to "taking" the Lord's name in vain (e.g. saying you're a Christian, but not acting like one). Either way, it could facilitate a conversation about Jesus Christ and you can share your faith.
God bless you as you meet this week's challenge!
teleho (Greek, see John 19:30): to end, that is, complete, execute, conclude, discharge (a debt): accomplish, make an end, expire, fill up, finish, go over, pay, perform
The Skeptic's Annotated Bible: Corrected and Explained
"The Skeptic's Annotated Bible" claims:
Exodus 34:27 - Moses, not God as is said in 34:1, writes the words on the stone tablets.
"The Skeptic's Annotated Bible: Corrected and Explained" responds:
God wrote on the tablets. However, He also told Moses to write them (or copy them). This practice was required of many Israelites. See Deuteronomy 17:18.
In Exodus 34:27, God clearly states, "write these words," then He doesn't speak. It is obvious that God is referring to the words that were already written.
(This explanation came from "The Skeptic's Annotated Bible: Corrected and Explained", by Dr. Jason Gastrich. This book is on CD and gives over 4,000 answers to alleged Bible errors, regarding the entire Bible at http://www.skepticsannotatedbible.org. There is also a 300 question workbook that accompanies the CD-ROM.)
Be prepared to meet the Lord.
If your meetings with God are meaningful, you'll continue having them without pause or remorse.
If you don't live for God, you could die in the desert.
Be determined to obey God.
God can use anyone to glorify Him if they are determined to obey Him.
Why are we the most impatient with the ones we love (the ones who love us the most)?
Christian patience isn't being lazy; it's being ready and watchful.
Be ready and willing to move as you wait on God.
Christ is so many things to so many people.
Be aware of His provision and His presence.
Commit to love and lead all people in an honorable way.
When you operate from character and convictions, you don't have to repent because you'll be doing God's will.
When you meet with God, spend time with your shoes off.
These quotes came from the Holy Spirit, Howard Everett, and Jason Gastrich. If you'd like to read more wise quotes, you can either visit our Quotations Archive or get a copy of Dr. Gastrich's book called, "10,000 Wise Quotes and Spiritual Sayings"! It's the largest collection of Bible-based quotations in the world.
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Jason Gastrich, Ph.D.
Executive Director
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