# Thru the Bible Commentary, Volumes 1-5 ![rw-book-cover](https://images-na.ssl-images-amazon.com/images/I/51zLhE113IL._SL200_.jpg) ## Metadata - Author: [[J. Vernon McGee]] - Full Title: Thru the Bible Commentary, Volumes 1-5 - Category: #books ## Highlights - The Book of Genesis is one of the two important key books of the Bible. The book that opens the Old Testament (Genesis) and the book that opens the New Testament (Matthew) are the two books which I feel are the key to the understanding of the Scriptures. ([Location 757](https://readwise.io/to_kindle?action=open&asin=B002NOGDJ8&location=757)) - I tell students that there are two ways of studying the Bible; one is with the telescope and the other way is with the microscope. At first, you need to get the telescopic view. After that, study it with a microscope. ([Location 776](https://readwise.io/to_kindle?action=open&asin=B002NOGDJ8&location=776)) - We live in the age of books. They pour out for us from the press in an ever increasing multitude. And we are always reading manuals, textbooks, articles, books of devotion, books of criticism, books about the Bible, books about the Gospels, all are devoured with avidity. But what amount of time and labor do we give to the consideration of the Gospels themselves? We’re constantly tempted to imagine that we get good more quickly by reading some modern statement of truth which we find comparatively easy to appropriate because it is presented to us in a shape, and from a standpoint, with which our education, or it may be partly association, has made us familiar. But the good we acquire readily is not that which enters most deeply into our being and becomes an abiding possession. It would be well if we could realize quite simply that nothing worth the having is to be gained without the winning. The great truths of nature are not offered to us in such a form as to make it easy to grasp them. The treasures of grace must be sought with all the skill and energy which are characteristic of the man who is searching for goodly pearls. (Robinson, The Personal Life of the Clergy.) ([Location 779](https://readwise.io/to_kindle?action=open&asin=B002NOGDJ8&location=779)) - New translations are appearing in our day; in fact, they are coming from the presses as fast and prolifically as rabbits multiply. However, I will continue to use the Authorized or King James Version. I refuse to substitute the pungency of genius with the bland, colorless, and tasteless mediocrity of the present day. ([Location 789](https://readwise.io/to_kindle?action=open&asin=B002NOGDJ8&location=789)) - The first eleven chapters cover a minimum time span of two thousand years—actually, two thousand years plus. I feel that it is safe to say that they may cover several hundred thousand years. I believe this first section of Genesis can cover any time in the past that you may need to fit into your particular theory, and the chances are that you would come short of it even then. At least we know the book covers a minimum of two thousand years in the first eleven chapters, but the second section of thirty-nine chapters covers only three hundred and fifty years. In fact, beginning with Genesis 12 and running all the way through the Old Testament and the New Testament, a total time span of only two thousand years is covered. Therefore, as far as time is concerned, you are halfway through the Bible when you cover the first eleven chapters of Genesis. ([Location 800](https://readwise.io/to_kindle?action=open&asin=B002NOGDJ8&location=800)) - Of the eighty-nine chapters in the four Gospel records, only four chapters cover the first thirty years of the life of the Lord Jesus while eighty-five chapters cover the last three years of His life, and twenty-seven chapters cover the final eight days of His life. Where does that indicate that the Spirit of God is placing the emphasis? I am sure you will agree that the emphasis is on the last part, the last eight days covered by the twenty-seven chapters. And what is that all about? It’s about the death, burial, and resurrection of the Lord Jesus Christ. That is the important part of the Gospel record. In other words, God has given the Gospels that you might believe that Christ died for our sins and that He was raised for our justification. That is essential. That is the all-important truth. ([Location 811](https://readwise.io/to_kindle?action=open&asin=B002NOGDJ8&location=811)) - May I say that the first eleven chapters of Genesis are merely the introduction to the Bible, and we need to look at them in this fashion. ([Location 816](https://readwise.io/to_kindle?action=open&asin=B002NOGDJ8&location=816)) - One of the best divisions which can be made of the Book of Genesis is according to the genealogies—i.e., according to the families. ([Location 820](https://readwise.io/to_kindle?action=open&asin=B002NOGDJ8&location=820)) - Gen. 1–2:6 Book of Generations of Heavens and Earth Gen. 2:7–6:8 Book of Generations of Adam Gen. 6:9–9:29 Generations of Noah Gen. 10:1–11:9 Generations of Sons of Noah Gen. 11:10–26 Generations of Sons of Shem Gen. 11:27–25:11 Generations of Terah Gen. 25:12–18 Generations of Ishmael Gen. 25:19–35:29 Generations of Isaac Gen. 36:1–37:1 Generations of Esau Gen. 37:2–50:26 Generations of Jacob ([Location 822](https://readwise.io/to_kindle?action=open&asin=B002NOGDJ8&location=822)) - This problem of origin provokes more violent controversy, wild theories, and wide disagreement than any other. Always there is the inclusion of men’s hypotheses, and as a result there is a babble of voices that has drowned out the clear voice of God. Actually, there are two extreme groups who have blurred the issue, and they have muddied the waters of understanding by their dogmatic assumptions and assertions. One group is comprised of the arrogant scientists who assume that biological and philosophical evolution are the gospel truth. Their assumed axiom is “the assured finding of science,” and we’ll look into that in a moment. The other group is comprised of the young and proud theologians who arrogate to themselves the super-knowledge that they have discovered how God did it. They write and speak learnedly about some clever theory that reconciles science and the Bible. They look with disdain upon the great giants of biblical expositors of the past as being Bible dwarfs compared to them. I would say that both of these groups would do well to consider a statement that was made to Job when the Lord finally appeared to him. God asked him the question: “Where wast thou when I laid the foundations of the earth? Declare, if thou hast understanding” (Job 38:4). In other words, God is saying to man, “You talk about the origin of the universe, but you don’t even know where you were when I laid the foundation of the earth!” ([Location 955](https://readwise.io/to_kindle?action=open&asin=B002NOGDJ8&location=955)) - There are a great many theories as to how the world began, but all of them can be boiled down to fit into a twofold classification: one is creation, and the other is speculation. All theories fall into one of these two divisions. ([Location 966](https://readwise.io/to_kindle?action=open&asin=B002NOGDJ8&location=966)) - Then there is the creation account in Genesis 1, which must be accepted by faith. It is very interesting that God has made it that way—by faith is the only way in the world by which you can accept it. Notice what the writer to the Hebrews said: “Now faith is the substance of things hoped for, the evidence of things not seen. For by it the elders obtained a good report. Through faith we understand that the worlds were framed by the word of God, so that things which are seen were not made of things which do appear” (Heb. 11:1–3). So today the great problem still remains. How did it get from nothing to something? The only way that you can ever arrive at an answer is by faith or by speculation—and speculation is very unscientific. ([Location 969](https://readwise.io/to_kindle?action=open&asin=B002NOGDJ8&location=969)) - The purpose of the Scripture is for instruction in righteousness. It was not written to teach you geology or biology. It was written to show man’s relationship to God and God’s requirements for man and what man must do to be saved. ([Location 982](https://readwise.io/to_kindle?action=open&asin=B002NOGDJ8&location=982)) - You can write this over the first part of the book of Genesis: “What must I do to be saved?” ([Location 983](https://readwise.io/to_kindle?action=open&asin=B002NOGDJ8&location=983)) - The biologist Edwin Conklin, speaking of evolution, stated that the probability of life originating by accident is “comparable to the probability of the unabridged dictionary originating from an explosion in a print shop.” That sounds very unscientific, coming from a scientist, but it’s true. ([Location 1004](https://readwise.io/to_kindle?action=open&asin=B002NOGDJ8&location=1004)) - May I say to you, he is moving into the realm of religion! My friend, to be an evolutionist you have to take it by faith. Evolution is speculation and always has been that. But, unfortunately, a great many folk have accepted it as fact. ([Location 1042](https://readwise.io/to_kindle?action=open&asin=B002NOGDJ8&location=1042)) - In our day a group of theologians (young theologians for the most part) who, not wanting to be called intellectual obscurantists, have adopted what is known as “theistic evolution.” If you would like to know what one scientist says about it, Kirtly Mather, in Science Ponders Religion, says: “When a theologian accepts evolution as the process used by the creator, he must be willing to go all the way with it. Not only is it an orderly process, it is a continuing one. The golden age for man—if any—is in the future, not in the past…. Moreover, the creative process of evolution is not to be interrupted by any supernatural intervention. The evolution of the first living cells from previously existing nonliving materials may represent a quantum-jump rather than an infinitesimal step along the path of progress, but it is an entirely natural development.” Theistic evolution is probably the most unrealistic of all theories. It is almost an unreasonable tenet and an illogical position. There are those today who are trying to run with the hare and with the hounds. They would like to move up with the unbelievers, but they also like to carry a Scofield Bible under their arm. My friend, it is difficult to do both. ([Location 1044](https://readwise.io/to_kindle?action=open&asin=B002NOGDJ8&location=1044)) - It still makes more sense to me to read: “In the beginning God created the heaven and the earth.” Who created the universe? God did. He created it out of nothing. When? I don’t know, and nobody else knows. Some men say one billion years ago, some say two billion, and now some say five billion. I personally suspect that they all are pikers. I think it was created long before that. My friend, we need to keep in mind that God has eternity behind Him. What do you think He has been doing during all the billions of years of the past? Waiting for you and me to come on the scene? No, He has been busy. He has had this creation a long time to work with. You see, He really has not told us very much, has He? It is presumptuous of little man down here on earth to claim to know more than he really knows. ([Location 1069](https://readwise.io/to_kindle?action=open&asin=B002NOGDJ8&location=1069)) - There are three essential areas into which evolution cannot move and which evolution cannot solve. It cannot bridge the gap from nothing to something. It cannot bridge the gap from something to life. It cannot bridge the gap between life and humanity—that is, self-conscious human life with a free will. ([Location 1100](https://readwise.io/to_kindle?action=open&asin=B002NOGDJ8&location=1100)) - The Word of God tells us that this universe was created for His own pleasure. He saw fit to create it; He delighted in it. In the final book of the Bible we find these words: “Thou art worthy, O Lord, to receive glory and honor and power: for thou hast created all things, and for thy pleasure they are and were created” (Rev. 4:11). ([Location 1112](https://readwise.io/to_kindle?action=open&asin=B002NOGDJ8&location=1112)) - The second reason that He created this universe was for His own glory. ([Location 1118](https://readwise.io/to_kindle?action=open&asin=B002NOGDJ8&location=1118)) - The Word of God also tells us that God created man in this universe for fellowship. He wanted to have fellowship with mankind, and so He created him a free moral agent. God could have made a bunch of robots. God could have made mechanical men and pushed a button to make them bow down to Him. But God didn’t want that kind of a man. God wanted a man to be free to choose Him and to love Him and to serve Him. ([Location 1122](https://readwise.io/to_kindle?action=open&asin=B002NOGDJ8&location=1122)) - My friend, in the midst of all the unbelief, the blasphemy, and the hostility toward God which is around us today, the greatest thing you can do as a human being is to publicly choose the Lord Jesus Christ. To believe in God the Father Almighty, the Maker of heaven and earth and to receive His Son, Jesus Christ, is the most glorious privilege that you and I have. We hear a lot of talk about freedom of speech and freedom of every sort, but this poor crowd around us who talks so loudly of freedom, doesn’t seem to know what freedom really is. We have real freedom when we choose Jesus Christ as our Savior. ([Location 1125](https://readwise.io/to_kindle?action=open&asin=B002NOGDJ8&location=1125)) - “In the beginning”—that is a beginning which you cannot date. You can estimate it as billions of years, and I think you would be accurate, but who knows how many? Certainly man does not know. ([Location 1132](https://readwise.io/to_kindle?action=open&asin=B002NOGDJ8&location=1132)) - This word is used only three times in the first chapter of Genesis, because it records only three acts of creation. (1) The creation of something from nothing: “In the beginning God created the heaven and the earth.” (2) The creation of life: “And God created great whales, and every living creature that moveth …” (v. 21). That’s animal life of all kinds. (3) The creation of man: “So God created man in his own image …” (v. 27). ([Location 1135](https://readwise.io/to_kindle?action=open&asin=B002NOGDJ8&location=1135)) - I believe that the entire universe came under this great catastrophe. What was the catastrophe? We can only suggest that there was some pre-Adamic creature that was on this earth. And it seems that all of this is connected with the fall of Lucifer, son of the morning, who became Satan, the devil, as we know him today. I think all of this is involved here, but God has not given us details. The fact of the matter is that He has given us very, very few details in the first chapter of Genesis. ([Location 1172](https://readwise.io/to_kindle?action=open&asin=B002NOGDJ8&location=1172)) - “And the spirit of God moved.” The word for “moved” means brooded, like a mother hen broods over her little chicks. He brooded upon the face of the waters. The Holy Spirit began a ministry here which we will find Him doing again and again. It is re-creation! He comes into this scene and He recreates. This is precisely what He does for us. ([Location 1175](https://readwise.io/to_kindle?action=open&asin=B002NOGDJ8&location=1175)) - Notice that God said, “Let there be light.” Ten times in this chapter we will find “let there be”—let there be a firmament, let there be lights, let the waters be gathered together, etc. Someone has called these the ten commandments of creation. ([Location 1196](https://readwise.io/to_kindle?action=open&asin=B002NOGDJ8&location=1196)) - “God said, Let there be light.” This is the first time we are told that God spoke. These are His first words recorded in Scripture. ([Location 1198](https://readwise.io/to_kindle?action=open&asin=B002NOGDJ8&location=1198)) - “God called the firmament Heaven.” This is not heaven as you and I think of it. Actually, there are three heavens that are mentioned in Scripture. The Lord Jesus spoke of the birds of heaven, and I think that is the heaven mentioned in this verse. Then there are the stars of heaven, meaning the second heaven, and there is the third heaven where God dwells. So the first layer up there, the first deck, is the deck where the clouds are and where the birds fly. ([Location 1212](https://readwise.io/to_kindle?action=open&asin=B002NOGDJ8&location=1212)) - You will notice that it is God who does the dividing here, “to divide the light from the darkness.” You know, He still does that! There are those today who ask, “What’s the difference between right and wrong?” God has drawn all the lines. How can we know what is right? God says what is right. God has put down certain principles. God divides the light from the darkness and there is just that much distinction between right and wrong. He is the One who makes the difference, and He still does it. ([Location 1250](https://readwise.io/to_kindle?action=open&asin=B002NOGDJ8&location=1250)) - We do have a certain amount of development. This does not mean that everything came from one little cell but that God made one of each creature and there has been development from each one. God said, “Let the waters bring forth abundantly,” and the next verse adds “after their kind.” The word “kind” does not mean species, as even Darwin said, but it means more than that. The word is phylum. I have been reading that one scientist said he had been looking around for another word. Well, I had a professor in seminary, a very brilliant man, who gave phylum as a synonym for “kind.” If you will look up that word in the dictionary, you will see that it means a direct line of descent within a group. For instance, it would include not just one horse but every animal in the horse family. God created one like that, and there has been development from each one, tremendous development. Also there has been devolution—that is, there has been development, then later there has been degeneration. ([Location 1259](https://readwise.io/to_kindle?action=open&asin=B002NOGDJ8&location=1259)) - We will notice some other truths in this chapter. It denies polytheism: One God creates. Secondly, it denies the eternity of matter. The first words are: “In the beginning”—and it all had a beginning, my friend. This is true in spite of the fact that there was a time when science taught the eternity of matter. Thirdly, this chapter denies pantheism. God is before all things and He is apart from them. Fourthly, it denies fatalism—God acts in the freedom of His will. Finally, let me enumerate the striking features in chapter 1: (1) Order (2) Progress (3) Promptness (4) Perfection ([Location 1364](https://readwise.io/to_kindle?action=open&asin=B002NOGDJ8&location=1364)) - Jesus paid it all, All to Him I owe; Sin had left a crimson stain, He washed it white as snow. —Mrs. H. M. Hall ([Location 1398](https://readwise.io/to_kindle?action=open&asin=B002NOGDJ8&location=1398)) - It was not God’s original intention for man to die, but man is now put on probation. You see, man has a free will, and privilege always creates responsibility. This is an axiomatic statement that is true. This man who is given a free will must be given a test to determine whether he will obey God or not. ([Location 1483](https://readwise.io/to_kindle?action=open&asin=B002NOGDJ8&location=1483)) - Do not tell me that a wife has to love her husband. God does not say that. God says that she is to respond to him. If he says to her, “I love you,” then she is going to say right back to him, “I love you.” When a man tells me, “My wife is very cold,” that is a dead giveaway that he is not really the kind of husband he should be. If he is the right kind of husband, she will respond, because he is the one to take the lead. ([Location 1519](https://readwise.io/to_kindle?action=open&asin=B002NOGDJ8&location=1519)) - We come now to what some consider to be the most important chapter of the Bible. It is conceded, I believe, by all conservative expositors to be just that. Dr. Griffith Thomas called chapter 3 the pivot of the Bible. ([Location 1549](https://readwise.io/to_kindle?action=open&asin=B002NOGDJ8&location=1549)) - Let me quote for you the statement of another concerning chapter 3: “Here we trace back to their source many of the rivers of divine truth. Here commences the great drama which is being enacted on the stage of human history and which well nigh 6,000 years has not yet completed. Here we find the divine explanation of the present fallen and ruined condition of our race. Here we learn of the subtle devices of our enemy, the devil. Here we behold the utter powerlessness of man to walk in the path of righteousness when divine grace is withheld from him. Here we discover the spiritual effects of sin, man seeking to flee from God. Here we discern the attitude of God toward the guilty sinner. Here we mark the universal tendency of human nature to cover its own moral shame by a device of man’s own handiwork. Here we are taught of the gracious provision which God has made to meet our great need. Here begins that marvelous stream of prophecy which runs all through the Holy Scriptures. Here we learn that man cannot approach God except through a mediator.” ([Location 1558](https://readwise.io/to_kindle?action=open&asin=B002NOGDJ8&location=1558)) - The question arises: Why the temptation? If we go back to chapters 1 and 2, we find that man was created innocent, but man was not created righteous. What is righteousness? Righteousness is innocence that has been maintained in the presence of temptation. You see, temptation will either develop you or destroy you; it will do one of the two. The Garden of Eden was not a hothouse, and man was not a hothouse plant. Character must be developed, and it can only be developed in the presence of temptation. Man was created a responsible being, and he was responsible to glorify, to obey, to serve, and to be subject to divine government. ([Location 1570](https://readwise.io/to_kindle?action=open&asin=B002NOGDJ8&location=1570)) - This anonymous poem on prayer reveals the necessity of this even in our own hearts: He prayed for strength that he might achieve; He was made weak that he might obey. He prayed for health that he might do greater things; He was given infirmity that he might do better things, He prayed for riches that he might be happy; He was given poverty that he might be wise. He prayed for power that he might have the praise of men; He was given infirmity that he might feel the need of God. He prayed for all things that he might enjoy life; He was given life that he might enjoy all things. He had received nothing that he asked for—all that he hoped for; His prayer was answered—he was most blessed. Salvation comes when you and I take our proper place as sinners before God. ([Location 1747](https://readwise.io/to_kindle?action=open&asin=B002NOGDJ8&location=1747)) - In Genesis 3 we have the root of sin and in Genesis 4 the fruit of sin. ([Location 1771](https://readwise.io/to_kindle?action=open&asin=B002NOGDJ8&location=1771)) - This reveals the fact that Adam and Eve certainly did not anticipate that the struggle was going to be long. When Cain was born, Eve must have said, “I have gotten the man from the Lord. God said that the seed of the woman would bruise the head of the serpent—and here he is!” But Cain was not the one. He was a murderer, he was no savior at all. It will be a long time before the Savior comes. ([Location 1780](https://readwise.io/to_kindle?action=open&asin=B002NOGDJ8&location=1780)) - In the eleventh verse of his epistle, speaking of apostates in the last days, Jude says, “… They have gone in the way of Cain …” What is the way of Cain? When Cain brought an offering to God, he did not come by faith—he came on his own. And the offering that he brought denied that human nature is evil. God said, “Bring that little blood sacrifice which will point to the Redeemer who is coming into the world. Come on that basis, and don’t come by bringing the works of your own hands.” Cain’s offering also denied that man was separated from God. He acted like everything was all right. This is what liberalism does today in talking about the universal fatherhood of God and the universal brotherhood of man. My friend, things are not all right with us today. We are not born children of God. We have to be born again to be children of God. Man is separated from God. Cain refused to recognize that, and multitudes today refuse to do so. The third thing that Cain’s offering denied was that man cannot offer works to God—Cain felt he could. ([Location 1803](https://readwise.io/to_kindle?action=open&asin=B002NOGDJ8&location=1803)) - Back of premeditated murder there always is anger. Our Lord said that, if you are angry with your brother without a cause, you are guilty of murder. Back of anger is jealousy, and back of jealousy is pride. There is no sense of sin whatsoever in spiritual pride. ([Location 1839](https://readwise.io/to_kindle?action=open&asin=B002NOGDJ8&location=1839)) - Yet in our day there is a curse upon the earth because of man’s sin which causes it to lose its fertility. In some of the most lush sections of our earth multitudes of folk are starving. It takes great effort and ingenuity for man to make this earth produce in abundance. ([Location 1878](https://readwise.io/to_kindle?action=open&asin=B002NOGDJ8&location=1878)) - There has been no law given at this time. Cain is a sinner, but he is not a transgressor because there has been no law given about murder. His great sin is that he did not bring the offering that was acceptable to God. His deeds were evil in what he brought to God, and he manifested that evil nature in slaying his brother. ([Location 1894](https://readwise.io/to_kindle?action=open&asin=B002NOGDJ8&location=1894)) - Cities have become one of the biggest problems that man has today. The cities, they say, are dying, and yet people all over the world are flocking to the cities. ([Location 1908](https://readwise.io/to_kindle?action=open&asin=B002NOGDJ8&location=1908)) - Here is the beginning of polygamy—having more than one wife. Lamech now does that which is contrary to what God intends, contrary to what God has for man. You will never find anywhere in the Scriptures that God approves of polygamy. If you read the accounts accurately, you will find that He condemns it. He gives the record of it because He is giving an historical record, and that is the basis on which it is given to us here. ([Location 1913](https://readwise.io/to_kindle?action=open&asin=B002NOGDJ8&location=1913)) - In the first section of the book of Genesis (chapters 1–11), we have world events—first the creation, then the fall, and now the Flood in chapters 5–9. In chapter 5 we have the book of the generations of Adam through Seth. Cain’s line has been given to us and is now dropped. It will be mentioned again only as it crosses the godly line. This is a pattern that will be set in the book of Genesis. ([Location 1945](https://readwise.io/to_kindle?action=open&asin=B002NOGDJ8&location=1945)) - In one sense, chapter 5 is one of the most discouraging and despondent chapters in the Bible. The reason is simply that it is like walking through a cemetery. God said to Adam, “… For in the day that thou eatest thereof thou shalt surely die” (Gen. 2:17), and they all died who were the sons of Adam. Paul says, “For as in Adam all die …” (1 Cor. 15:22). ([Location 1949](https://readwise.io/to_kindle?action=open&asin=B002NOGDJ8&location=1949)) - “The book of the generations of Adam.” This strange expression occurs again only in the beginning of the New Testament, and there it is “the book of the generation of Jesus Christ.” There are these two books, as we are already seeing that there are two lines, two seeds, and they are against each other. The struggle is going to be long between the line of Satan and the line of Christ, the accepted line. The line which we are following now is the line through Seth, and it is through this line that Christ will ultimately come. ([Location 1957](https://readwise.io/to_kindle?action=open&asin=B002NOGDJ8&location=1957)) - May I say, this answers a lot of questions about the age of the earth. When someone says that certain rocks are billions of years old, they just do not know. Maybe when God created them, He created them two or three billion years old. The important thing here is that when Adam had been here 130 years, he begat a son in his own likeness. Adam was made in the likeness of God, but his son was born in his likeness. ([Location 1965](https://readwise.io/to_kindle?action=open&asin=B002NOGDJ8&location=1965)) - Now we start through the graveyard. ([Location 1972](https://readwise.io/to_kindle?action=open&asin=B002NOGDJ8&location=1972)) - I think that all the great truths here in Genesis are germane. In my judgment, this is the picture of what is to come; here is the Rapture of the church. Before the judgment of the Flood, God removes Enoch. ([Location 2007](https://readwise.io/to_kindle?action=open&asin=B002NOGDJ8&location=2007)) - The name of Methuselah means “sending forth.” Others believe that Methuselah meant: “When he is dead, it shall be sent.” What will be sent? The Flood. As long as Methuselah lived, the Flood could not come. The very interesting thing is that according to a chronology of the genealogy of the patriarchs (shown at the end of this chapter) the year that Methuselah died is the year that the Flood came. “When he is dead, it shall be sent”—that is the meaning of his name. ([Location 2019](https://readwise.io/to_kindle?action=open&asin=B002NOGDJ8&location=2019)) - Why did Methuselah live longer than any other person? God kept him here just to let mankind know that He is patient and merciful. God will also wait for you, my friend—all of your life. Peter speaks of the long-suffering of our God: “Which sometime were disobedient, when once the long-suffering of God waited in the days of Noah, while the ark was a-preparing, wherein few, that is, eight souls were saved by water” (1 Pet. 3:20). ([Location 2023](https://readwise.io/to_kindle?action=open&asin=B002NOGDJ8&location=2023)) - It is the popular theory in the world, blindly accepted by men, and the conclusion, I think, of all philosophy, that human nature is inherently and innately good and that it can be improved. The whole program that is abroad today is that, if we will just try to improve the environment of man and his heredity, he can really be improved. Communism and socialism seek to improve man. Arminianism means that man can assist in his salvation. Modernism says that man can save himself. In other words, salvation is sort of a do-it-yourself kit that God gives to you. Some of the cults tell us that human nature is totally good and that there is no such thing as sin. What does God say concerning man? God says that man is totally evil, totally bad. That is the condition of all of us. “There is none righteous, no, not one” (Rom. 3:10). That is the estimate of the Word of God. If you will accept God’s Word for it, it will give you a truer conception of life today than is given to us by others. ([Location 2031](https://readwise.io/to_kindle?action=open&asin=B002NOGDJ8&location=2031)) - Genealogy of the Patriarchs These Columns Show Which of the Patriarchs Were Contemporary with Each Other ([Location 2040](https://readwise.io/to_kindle?action=open&asin=B002NOGDJ8&location=2040)) - There are four words here that ought to be emphasized and which I have marked in my Bible. “The wickedness of man was great.” “Every imagination of the thoughts of his heart was only evil.” Only evil—that is all it was—and that “continually.” These four words reveal the condition of the human family that was upon the earth. ([Location 2092](https://readwise.io/to_kindle?action=open&asin=B002NOGDJ8&location=2092)) - There is a striking comparison in the fact that the days of Noah are to be duplicated before the Lord comes again to the earth, not for the Rapture, but to establish His kingdom. But there are some remarkable parallels that have already taken place. For instance, this chapter opened: “And it came to pass, when men began to multiply on the face of the earth, and daughters were born unto them….” There was this tremendous population increase, and by that time man had spread pretty much over the earth. He was in North America, in Asia, in Europe, and in Africa. He had spread in every direction. Today we have a tremendous population explosion, and men again have increased upon the face of the earth. ([Location 2137](https://readwise.io/to_kindle?action=open&asin=B002NOGDJ8&location=2137)) - Isn’t it amazing that the only ones who are listened to by the world today are the liberal Protestant and Roman Catholic ministers? You hear nothing from conservative men. They have attempted to make some sort of inroad, and they are trying their best to get back in the mainstream, but we have come to the day when, if you are going to stand for God, you will find that you will not be able to talk before a television camera very often. Instead, you must learn to protest, to march, and to deny Christ before you can expect a television interview! ([Location 2145](https://readwise.io/to_kindle?action=open&asin=B002NOGDJ8&location=2145)) - There is a great spiritual lesson here which I would not have you miss for anything in the world. Noah is engaged here in “bird-watching.” He sends out the raven, and the raven does not come back. Why didn’t that raven come back? You must recognize what that raven eats—it feeds on carrion. There was a whole lot of flesh of dead animals floating around after the Flood, and that was the kind of thing this old crow ate. He did not return to the ark because he was really going to a feast, and he was having a very wonderful time. The raven was classified as an unclean bird, by the way. The dove is a clean bird and is so listed later on in Scripture. Remember that Noah took into the ark both the clean and the unclean animals. The dove brought back information: it was a regular homing pigeon. With the dove’s second trip, Noah was now a confirmed bird-watcher—and the dove brought back evidence that the dry land was appearing. The third time, the dove did not return, and Noah knew that the waters of judgment were gone. I have said before that all great truths of the Bible are germane in Genesis. The Bible teaches that the believer has two natures, an old and a new nature: “Therefore if any man be in Christ, he is a new creature: old things are passed away; behold, all things are become new” (2 Cor. 5:17). The clean and the unclean are together. You and I as believers have these two natures. Our Lord said: “That which is born of the flesh is flesh; and that which is born of the Spirit is spirit” (John 3:6). And Paul writes: “For I know that in me (that is, in my flesh,) dwelleth no good thing: for to will is present with me; but how to perform that which is good I find not” (Rom. 7:18). Paul spoke of a struggle between the two natures. And there is a struggle today between the old nature and the new nature of a believer. The raven went out into a judged world, but he found a feast in the dead carcass because that is the thing he lived on. The bloated carcass of an elephant would have made him a banquet; I tell you, it would have been for him a bacchanalian orgy. Back and forth, he restlessly went up and down. May I say to you, that is the picture of the old nature; the old nature is like that raven. The old nature loves the things of the world and feasts on them. That is the reason so many people watch television on Sunday night and do not go to church. Don’t tell me that you have some good excuse for that. You do have an old nature, but that is no excuse because you ought not to be living in the old nature. The dove went out into a judged world, but she found no rest, no satisfaction, and she returned to the ark. The dove represents the believer in the world. The old raven went out into the world and loved it. When he found that old carcass, he probably thought the millennium had arrived! You see, it is a matter of viewpoint. A professor said to me, “This matter of what’s right and wrong is relative.” He’s right; it is. It is what God says is right, and… ([Location 2333](https://readwise.io/to_kindle?action=open&asin=B002NOGDJ8&location=2333)) - Prior to the Flood, man learned the three R’s: (1) Rebellion against God was realized—it came right out in the open. (2) Revelation from God was rejected by man. Noah’s witness did not reach them. (3) Repentance was absolutely repudiated; there was no return to God at all. Men refused the refuge that God provided, and for 120 years Noah had no converts. These are the three R’s. Men led in rebellion, they rejected the revelation, and there was no repentance on their part. Now as this man Noah comes forth from the ark, he stands in a most unique position. He stands in the position of being the head of the human race again—the same position Adam had. It is said that we are all related to Adam, but we are closer kin than that: we are all related in Noah. In one sense, Noah is the father of all of us today. ([Location 2411](https://readwise.io/to_kindle?action=open&asin=B002NOGDJ8&location=2411)) - Our lives are no longer safe on the streets and often not in our homes, either. Although I know that many officials would deny this, one reason is our attitude toward capital punishment. When a criminal knows that if he takes a life, his life is going to be sacrificed, then may I say to you, he’ll think twice before he takes a life. Also, there is an idea today about getting a gun-control law. May I say that the problem is not with the gun in the hand, it is with the heart inside the man. ([Location 2480](https://readwise.io/to_kindle?action=open&asin=B002NOGDJ8&location=2480)) - The question arises: When man came out of the ark after the Flood and all the sinners were dead, does that mean that there was no more sin on the earth? Well, let’s look and see. ([Location 2531](https://readwise.io/to_kindle?action=open&asin=B002NOGDJ8&location=2531)) - God had a further reason for recording the incident of Noah’s sin. In Romans 15:4 we read these words: “For whatsoever things were written aforetime were written for our learning, that we through patience and comfort of the scriptures might have hope.” It was recorded to let you and me know something of the weakness of the flesh. ([Location 2568](https://readwise.io/to_kindle?action=open&asin=B002NOGDJ8&location=2568)) - Let me give you a quotation from Saphir’s book, The Divine Unity of Scripture: The tenth chapter of Genesis is a very remarkable chapter. Before God leaves, as it were, the nations to themselves and begins to deal with Israel, His chosen people from Abraham downward, He takes a loving farewell of all the nations of the earth, as much as to say, “I am going to leave you for a while, but I love you. I have created you: I have ordered all your future; and their different genealogies are traced.” In chapter 10 seventy nations are listed. Fourteen of them are from Japheth. Thirty of them come from Ham. Don’t forget that. It will give you a different conception of the black man at his beginning. And twenty-six nations come from Shem, making a total of seventy nations listed in this genealogy. ([Location 2640](https://readwise.io/to_kindle?action=open&asin=B002NOGDJ8&location=2640)) - ” In chapter 10 seventy nations are listed. Fourteen of them are from Japheth. Thirty of them come from Ham. Don’t forget that. It will give you a different conception of the black man at his beginning. And twenty-six nations come from Shem, making a total of seventy nations listed in this genealogy. ([Location 2644](https://readwise.io/to_kindle?action=open&asin=B002NOGDJ8&location=2644)) - Why has the white man in our day been so prominent? Well, I’ll tell you why. Because at the beginning it was the black man, the colored races, that were prominent. Then the sons of Shem made a tremendous impact upon this world during the time of David and Solomon. And you will notice that from Shem there came others, such as the Syrians, the Lydians, and the Armenians, also the Arabians from Joktan. These great nations appeared next. Apparently we are currently in the period in which the white man has come to the front. It seems to me that all three are demonstrating that, regardless of whether they are a son of Ham or a son of Shem or a son of Japheth, they are incapable of ruling this world. I believe that God is demonstrating this to us, and to see this is a tremendous thing. ([Location 2648](https://readwise.io/to_kindle?action=open&asin=B002NOGDJ8&location=2648)) - Well, my friend, all that Moses is simply doing is anticipating the next chapter in which he will give us the account of the Tower of Babel. At that time the earth was divided. May I say that the simple interpretation seems to be the one that a great many folk miss, and we should not miss it. ([Location 2660](https://readwise.io/to_kindle?action=open&asin=B002NOGDJ8&location=2660)) - I want to submit to you that this is one of the great chapters of the Bible although we have given very little space to it. You can see what a rich study this would make for anyone who really wanted a fair appraisal of the human family. A great many have used this remarkable chapter for that purpose. ([Location 2665](https://readwise.io/to_kindle?action=open&asin=B002NOGDJ8&location=2665)) - But at the time of its construction, the Tower of Babel represented the rebellion of mankind against Almighty God. Apparently it was Nimrod who led in this movement. He was the builder of the city of Babel and evidently of the Tower of Babel also. It was to be a place for him to rear a world empire that was in opposition to God. ([Location 2694](https://readwise.io/to_kindle?action=open&asin=B002NOGDJ8&location=2694)) - The day will come when God will put the people of Israel back in the land, and when He does it, they won’t have only a toehold. They will have the land all the way east to the Euphrates River and all the way north as far as the Hittite nation was and all the way south to the river of Egypt, which is a little river in the Arabian desert. They have never really occupied the land God gave to them. At the zenith of their power, they occupied 30,000 square miles, but that is not all that God gave them. Actually, He gave them 300,000 square miles. They have a long way to go, but they will have to get it on God’s terms and in God’s appointed time. ([Location 2861](https://readwise.io/to_kindle?action=open&asin=B002NOGDJ8&location=2861)) - My friend, it is very comfortable today where I sit. I have come to the position that God is running things. It is nice to sit here without being frightened by the headlines in the newspaper and without being disturbed by what is going on in the world. God is in control, and He is going to work things out His way. ([Location 2866](https://readwise.io/to_kindle?action=open&asin=B002NOGDJ8&location=2866)) - You see, one of the reasons that you and I are not always blessed in the reading of the Bible is because the Bible condemns—we are not living up to the light which God has already given to us. If we would obey God, then more blessing would come. We see in Abram’s experience that God did not appear again to him until after he had moved out and had begun to obey God on the light that he had. ([Location 2909](https://readwise.io/to_kindle?action=open&asin=B002NOGDJ8&location=2909)) - It’s amazing how the world draws Christians today and how they can rationalize. ([Location 2940](https://readwise.io/to_kindle?action=open&asin=B002NOGDJ8&location=2940)) - As long as Abram is in the land of Egypt and as long as he is still holding on to Lot, God does not appear to him. The minute that he comes back to the land and there is the separation from Lot, God appears to him. ([Location 2982](https://readwise.io/to_kindle?action=open&asin=B002NOGDJ8&location=2982)) - Abram got two things in the land of Egypt which caused him untold grief. One was riches, and the second was a little Egyptian maid by the name of Hagar. We will see more about her later. But now he has riches, and it causes him and Lot to have to separate—there is strife between them. ([Location 3004](https://readwise.io/to_kindle?action=open&asin=B002NOGDJ8&location=3004)) - Let me say this to you, although it may step on your toes. I do not know your town, I do not know where you live, but if yours is like other towns and like the town I came from, the Methodists and the Baptists and the Presbyterians don’t get along, and there is fighting. And when there are these internal fights in a church today, the unsaved man on the outside knows about it. May I say to you, he then says, “If that’s Christianity, I don’t want any part of it. I can get a fight outside. I don’t need to join the church to get a fight.” The Lord Jesus did not say to His own, nor to the church today, “By this shall all men know that you are My disciples if you’re fundamental and you organize a church.” Oh, no! He said, “By this shall all men know that ye are my disciples, if ye have love one to another” (John 13:35). The “Perizzite” and the “Canaanite”—those old rascals—know when your church is fighting on the inside, my friend. ([Location 3011](https://readwise.io/to_kindle?action=open&asin=B002NOGDJ8&location=3011)) - There are a lot of people not being won today, my friend, because of the strife that is inside the church. This is an interesting thing: “the Canaanite and the Perizzite dwelled then in the land.” And they still dwell in the land. They are right near your church, by the way. ([Location 3022](https://readwise.io/to_kindle?action=open&asin=B002NOGDJ8&location=3022)) - No man falls suddenly. It always takes place over a period of time. You lift the flap of your tent, and you pitch your tent toward Sodom—and that’s the beginning. Lot lifted up his eyes, he saw the plain, and he headed in that direction. That is the biggest mistake he ever made in his life. ([Location 3041](https://readwise.io/to_kindle?action=open&asin=B002NOGDJ8&location=3041)) - Abram was quite an altar builder. You could always tell where Abram had been because he left a testimony. Man has left a footprint on the moon. They’ve left a flag up there and a little motto saying, “We have come in peace”—but they did not leave the Bible, the Word of God. That reveals the difference between the thinking of Abram and the thinking of the age and period in which we live today. The important thing to Abram was an altar to the Lord, and that is exactly what he built. ([Location 3071](https://readwise.io/to_kindle?action=open&asin=B002NOGDJ8&location=3071)) - One of the meanings of Mamre is “richness,” and Hebron means “communion.” That is a marvelous place to dwell. In our day we can be fairly certain that we have located the tree where Abram was, and the well that is there—I have been there. It is quite an interesting spot between Hebron and Mamre, and that is where Abram dwelt. It is a good place to be: in the place of richness and of communion with God. This seems to have been Abram’s home, and this is where he is buried. ([Location 3074](https://readwise.io/to_kindle?action=open&asin=B002NOGDJ8&location=3074)) - We come to one of the high points of the Bible here in chapter 15. ([Location 3203](https://readwise.io/to_kindle?action=open&asin=B002NOGDJ8&location=3203)) - This man Abraham actually has two seeds. He has a physical seed, the nation Israel, and he has a spiritual seed, the church. How does the church become Abraham’s spiritual seed? By faith. Paul told the Galatians that they were the sons of Abraham by faith in Jesus Christ—not in a natural line, but a spiritual seed (see Gal. 3:29). ([Location 3233](https://readwise.io/to_kindle?action=open&asin=B002NOGDJ8&location=3233)) - And he believed in the LORD; and he counted it to him for righteousness [Gen. 15:6]. This is one of the greatest statements in the Scriptures: “And he believed in the LORD.” What this means is that Abram said amen to God. God has said, “I will do this for you,” and Abram says to God, “I believe You. Amen. I believe it.” And that was counted to him for righteousness. ([Location 3241](https://readwise.io/to_kindle?action=open&asin=B002NOGDJ8&location=3241)) - I am inclined to believe that the Angel of the Lord is none other than the preincarnate Christ. This is characteristic of Him: He is always out looking for the lost. Hagar had traveled quite a distance from home. ([Location 3391](https://readwise.io/to_kindle?action=open&asin=B002NOGDJ8&location=3391)) - But wait just a minute! We probably come just as far short of really knowing about God as Hagar did. It is difficult for a little, finite man to conceive of the infinite God, and all of us come short of understanding and of knowing Him. I think that a theme which will engage us throughout the endless ages of eternity is just coming to know God. That is worthy of any man’s study. To come to know God is something that will dignify a man’s position throughout eternity. ([Location 3422](https://readwise.io/to_kindle?action=open&asin=B002NOGDJ8&location=3422)) - Actually, there were seven tests which God gave to him: ([Location 3432](https://readwise.io/to_kindle?action=open&asin=B002NOGDJ8&location=3432)) - (1) God called Abram out of Ur of the Chaldees, his home, and Abram responded partially. His faith was weak and imperfect, but at least he moved out. Abram finally arrived safely in the land of Canaan, and God blessed him. ([Location 3432](https://readwise.io/to_kindle?action=open&asin=B002NOGDJ8&location=3432)) - (2) Then there was a famine in the land of Canaan, and Abram fled from the land of Canaan to Egypt. There he acquired riches and Hagar—and both were stumbling blocks. ([Location 3434](https://readwise.io/to_kindle?action=open&asin=B002NOGDJ8&location=3434)) - (3) Abram was given riches which are a real test. They have been a stumbling block to many a man, by the way. Frankly, I have always wished that the Lord would have let me have that kind of test rather than some of the others I’ve had! But nevertheless, I’m of the opinion that He could not have trusted me with riches. Abram did not forget God, and he was certainly generous and magnanimous toward his nephew Lot. Riches resulted in his separation from Lot, and God appeared to him again. ([Location 3435](https://readwise.io/to_kindle?action=open&asin=B002NOGDJ8&location=3435)) - (4) Abram was given power through his defeat of the kings of the east. That was a real test, for he happened to be the conqueror. This man Melchizedek met him, which I think strengthened Abram for the test, and so he refused the spoils of war. Afterwards, God appeared to Abram and encouraged him. ([Location 3439](https://readwise.io/to_kindle?action=open&asin=B002NOGDJ8&location=3439)) - (5) God delayed giving Abram a son by his wife Sarai. Abram became impatient, and through the prompting of Sarai, he took matters into his own hands and moved outside the will of God. As a result, there was the birth of Ishmael. The Arabs of the desert today still plague the nation Israel, and they will keep right on doing that, I think, until the Millennium. ([Location 3441](https://readwise.io/to_kindle?action=open&asin=B002NOGDJ8&location=3441)) - Abraham’s two final tests occur (6) at the destruction of Sodom and Gomorrah in chapter 18 and (7) at the offering of his son Isaac in chapter 22. ([Location 3444](https://readwise.io/to_kindle?action=open&asin=B002NOGDJ8&location=3444)) - A great many people feel that the seventeenth chapter is the most outstanding chapter of the Book of Genesis. Here God makes a covenant with Abram and confirms His promise to him about a son. He lets Abram know that Ishmael is not the one He promised to him. In one sense this chapter is the key to the Book of Genesis, and it may be a key to the entire Bible. God’s covenant with Abram concerns two important items: a seed and a land. ([Location 3448](https://readwise.io/to_kindle?action=open&asin=B002NOGDJ8&location=3448)) - Thirteen times in this chapter we find the word covenant. For it to appear thirteen times in twenty-seven verses obviously means that God is talking about the covenant. ([Location 3462](https://readwise.io/to_kindle?action=open&asin=B002NOGDJ8&location=3462)) - Paul, writing in the fourth chapter of Romans, says this: “And being not weak in faith, he considered not his own body now dead, when he was about an hundred years old, neither yet the deadness of Sarah’s womb” (Rom. 4:19). Sarah’s womb actually was a tomb—it was the place of death. And out of death came life: Isaac was born. Paul concludes that fourth chapter by saying this about the Lord Jesus: “Who was delivered for our offences, and was raised again for our justification” (Rom. 4:25). Life out of death—that is the promise God is now making to this man. Abram is 99 years old, and that means that Sarai is 89 years old. When Isaac was born, Abraham was 100 years old and Sarah 90. ([Location 3465](https://readwise.io/to_kindle?action=open&asin=B002NOGDJ8&location=3465)) - They say, “How ridiculous can that be?” Here was a man who was a father before he had any children. Abraham was Abraham, father of a multitude, by faith at that time. But four thousand years later, where you and I sit, we can say that God sure made this good. The name stuck, if you please, and he is still Abraham, the father of a multitude. ([Location 3497](https://readwise.io/to_kindle?action=open&asin=B002NOGDJ8&location=3497)) - In chapter 10 seventy nations are listed. Fourteen of them are from Japheth. Thirty of them come from Ham. Don’t forget that. It will give you a different conception of the black man at his beginning. And twenty-six nations come from Shem, making a total of seventy nations listed in this genealogy. ([Location 3903](https://readwise.io/to_kindle?action=open&asin=B002NOGDJ8&location=3903)) - Deut. 5:16]. I believe this commandment is related to duty toward God and man. The father and mother stand in the place of God to the little one who is growing up. The little one looks up to the father and the mother, and that is the way it should be. “My son, hear the instruction of thy father, and forsake not the law of thy mother” (Prov. 1:8). Father and mother are to stand in the place of God while their children are small. Now as these people are going into the land promised to them, they are to ([Location 21500](https://readwise.io/to_kindle?action=open&asin=B002NOGDJ8&location=21500)) - David respected the office of king, although he may not have respected the man. ([Location 28550](https://readwise.io/to_kindle?action=open&asin=B002NOGDJ8&location=28550)) - May I interject a thought at this particular point. I personally do not feel that the president of the United States, regardless of his party or character, should be made the subject of a cartoon or the object of ridicule. In a democracy, of course, he can be criticized, but to make our president a subject of ridicule, as do some cartoonists and some comedians, is entirely wrong. Now this is just my personal opinion, but I think that we ought to have more respect for the office than we do. We live in a country that has its faults, but it has been a great country for most of us, and its offices and officers should be respected. ([Location 28551](https://readwise.io/to_kindle?action=open&asin=B002NOGDJ8&location=28551)) - David says, “God will have to take care of him.” David is acting upon the principle found in Hebrews 10:30, “… Vengeance belongeth unto me, I will recompense, saith the Lord.” ([Location 28751](https://readwise.io/to_kindle?action=open&asin=B002NOGDJ8&location=28751)) - What a lesson there is for us in this. Let’s not try to be something we are not, or try to do something we are really not called to do. If God has called you to use a slingshot, friend, don’t try to use a sword. If God has called you to speak, then speak. If God has called you to do something else, well, do that. If God has called you to sing, sing. But if He has not called you to sing, for goodness sake, don’t do it. Too many people are trying to use a sword when the slingshot is really more their size. ([Location 29963](https://readwise.io/to_kindle?action=open&asin=B002NOGDJ8&location=29963)) - . David respected the office of king, although he may not have respected the man. May I interject a thought at this particular point. I personally do not feel that the president of the United States, regardless of his party or character, should be made the subject of a cartoon or the object of ridicule. In a democracy, of course, he can be criticized, but to make our president a subject of ridicule, as do some cartoonists and some comedians, is entirely wrong. Now this is just my personal opinion, but I think that we ought to have more respect for the office than we do. We live in a country that has its faults, but it has been a great country for most of us, and its offices and officers should be respected. ([Location 30433](https://readwise.io/to_kindle?action=open&asin=B002NOGDJ8&location=30433)) - am of the opinion that Saul is actually demon-possessed at this time. We are told that an evil spirit had come upon him. ([Location 30476](https://readwise.io/to_kindle?action=open&asin=B002NOGDJ8&location=30476)) - David says, “God will have to take care of him.” David is acting upon the principle found in Hebrews 10:30, “… Vengeance belongeth unto me, I will recompense, saith the Lord.” ([Location 30669](https://readwise.io/to_kindle?action=open&asin=B002NOGDJ8&location=30669)) - Someone has said, “There is so much good in the worst of us, and so much bad in the best of us, that it behooves most of us not to talk about the rest of us.” ([Location 31826](https://readwise.io/to_kindle?action=open&asin=B002NOGDJ8&location=31826)) - She tried to exterminate the line of David. This was another attempt of Satan to destroy the line that is leading to the Lord Jesus Christ. Satan attempted to wipe out the line of David so that the Savior would not be born. Down through the ages the devil has tried to eliminate the Jews. In Egypt the Lord preserved Moses, and the Jews were not slain but allowed to leave Egypt. Haman, in the Book of Esther, attempted to exterminate the Jews but was foiled. Satan was behind each of these attempts. Now here is this woman Athaliah attempting to exterminate the line of David. ([Location 36336](https://readwise.io/to_kindle?action=open&asin=B002NOGDJ8&location=36336)) - In three of the post-captivity books there are three great ninth chapters which record prayers: Ezra 9, Nehemiah 9, and Daniel 9. ([Location 42618](https://readwise.io/to_kindle?action=open&asin=B002NOGDJ8&location=42618)) - Someone has said that discouragement is the ([Location 42632](https://readwise.io/to_kindle?action=open&asin=B002NOGDJ8&location=42632)) - devil’s greatest weapon. ([Location 42632](https://readwise.io/to_kindle?action=open&asin=B002NOGDJ8&location=42632)) - Really, today, how much are we involved? How much do we believe the Word of God? My Christian friend, it would pay you and me to go to a solitary place and ask ourselves these questions: “Do I really believe God’s Word? Do I really obey it?” The Lord Jesus said, “If ye love me, keep my commandments” (John 14:15). ([Location 42669](https://readwise.io/to_kindle?action=open&asin=B002NOGDJ8&location=42669)) - The church is in a bad state. I’ll grant you that. But, my friend, it is not their sin; it is our sin. If the church is in apostasy, my friend, then we are in apostasy. ([Location 42684](https://readwise.io/to_kindle?action=open&asin=B002NOGDJ8&location=42684)) - That is why he trembled when he recognized that God would judge him. ([Location 42691](https://readwise.io/to_kindle?action=open&asin=B002NOGDJ8&location=42691)) - God would have extended mercy to him, but the interesting thing is that this man was guilty. Our God is a holy God and He judges sin. It is too bad that more of us don’t tremble at the Word of God. ([Location 42694](https://readwise.io/to_kindle?action=open&asin=B002NOGDJ8&location=42694)) - Technically, revival means “to recover life, or vigor; return to consciousness.” It refers to that which has life, then ebbs down almost to death, has no vitality, and then is revived. ([Location 42712](https://readwise.io/to_kindle?action=open&asin=B002NOGDJ8&location=42712)) - Obviously the word revival must be confined to believers if we are going to be technical. It means that the believer is in a low spiritual condition and is brought back to vitality and power. So here in Ezra’s day a real revival is going to take place. ([Location 42714](https://readwise.io/to_kindle?action=open&asin=B002NOGDJ8&location=42714)) - Let’s face it—America is a pagan nation. Believers are a minority. ([Location 42780](https://readwise.io/to_kindle?action=open&asin=B002NOGDJ8&location=42780)) - God is saying to the lost, “Come to me and be saved through Jesus Christ.” He is saying to His church, “Repent. Come back to Me. Come out of your coldness and indifference.” ([Location 42782](https://readwise.io/to_kindle?action=open&asin=B002NOGDJ8&location=42782)) - What the average church needs to do is get rid of some of the members they can locate—those who need to repent but will not repent. ([Location 42800](https://readwise.io/to_kindle?action=open&asin=B002NOGDJ8&location=42800)) - Three men played important roles in the rebuilding of Jerusalem. There was Zerubbabel, the prince, who represented the political side. Then there was Ezra, the priest, and finally Nehemiah, the layman. ([Location 42906](https://readwise.io/to_kindle?action=open&asin=B002NOGDJ8&location=42906)) - I am looking to God to raise up a young man who will not be a product of our seminaries. I have no objection to seminary graduates, but from time to time God raises up men who do not have that background—men like Dwight L. Moody, Billy Sunday, and Billy Graham. We need men like Nehemiah. ([Location 42919](https://readwise.io/to_kindle?action=open&asin=B002NOGDJ8&location=42919)) - Watch and pray, or work and pray, are the words that characterize this man. ([Location 42922](https://readwise.io/to_kindle?action=open&asin=B002NOGDJ8&location=42922)) - The key verse to the Book of Daniel is Daniel 2:44: “And in the days of these kings shall the God of heaven set up a kingdom,which shall never be destroyed: and the kingdom shall not be left to other people, but it shall break in pieces and consume all these kingdoms, and it shall stand for ever.” ([Location 70056](https://readwise.io/to_kindle?action=open&asin=B002NOGDJ8&location=70056)) - Glory is something that produces a sensation on all five of our senses. Glory has size. How big is it? Is it long or square or round? May I say, glory has the size of the infinity of space. The Word of God tells us, “The heavens declare the glory of God; and the firmament sheweth his handiwork” (Ps. 19:1). The glory of God is seen in this tremendous universe that you and I live in. Glory also has a beauty to it: “… whose glorious beauty is a fading flower …” (Isa. 28:1). Glory is beautiful. My, heaven is going to be a beautiful place. How lovely it’s going to be! Glory has to do with adornment. We read in Scripture that He was “… glorious in his apparel …” (Isa. 63:1). He is really dressed up and lovely in the garb that he wears. There is a majesty about glory. Psalm 8:1 declares, “O LORD our Lord, how excellent is thy name in all the earth! who hast set thy glory above the heavens.” This is the majesty of God; it is bright and light, precious and pure. Finally, glory also sets forth honor and dignity. Daniel said, “O thou king, the most high God gave Nebuchadnezzar thy father a kingdom, and majesty, and glory, and honour” (Dan. 5:18). The very name of God suggests His dignity, His glory. Ezekiel saw the glory of the Lord. ([Location 74627](https://readwise.io/to_kindle?action=open&asin=B002NOGDJ8&location=74627)) - Samson was also a man who pretended to be God’s man, and the Spirit of God did come upon him at times. The Holy Spirit—never his hair—was the secret of his power. But there came a day when he went out and “… he wist it not …” (Lev. 5:17)—he knew not that the Spirit of God had departed from him. He had kept toying and playing with sin and at the same time wanting to be God’s man. How many people today in the church keep toying and playing with sin and think they are getting by with it? My friend, they are not getting by with it. Judgment is inevitable. They may go through the form and ritual of religion, keeping up a false front, but they actually have idols in their hearts. Ezekiel is told by the Lord that these men are phonies. They pretend they want to hear his message, but they do not hear it at all. When he turns around, they will put a knife in his back. ([Location 75432](https://readwise.io/to_kindle?action=open&asin=B002NOGDJ8&location=75432)) - God says He will judge these men. The Lord Jesus called the religious rulers of His day hypocrites. He used that frightful, awful word more than anyone. Ezekiel is speaking to the spiritual leaders of the people. How tragic this is! God is going to judge them. God will always judge phony religion. I believe that whenever a church or an individual departs from the truth, God will judge. ([Location 75442](https://readwise.io/to_kindle?action=open&asin=B002NOGDJ8&location=75442)) - God has laid it on the line that these men are phonies, not genuine, having idols in their hearts, sin in their hearts. Again, someone might say about Samson, “My, isn’t that terrible about Samson!” I’d hate to live like that man did and have that judgment come upon me.” However, I am afraid that there are folk who sit in the church pew and yet would like to live in sin, to taste the fruits of sin. The very thing they condemn outwardly is the thing in their heart they would like to do. This old nature we have is bad, but God says, “Repent. Come to Me.” He is gracious to Israel. He is giving them an opportunity to become genuine, but they will not. ([Location 75448](https://readwise.io/to_kindle?action=open&asin=B002NOGDJ8&location=75448)) - (One thing nice about being a square is that you don’t go around in circles as do a lot of other people. Some of those going around in circles really think they are big wheels, too!) ([Location 75470](https://readwise.io/to_kindle?action=open&asin=B002NOGDJ8&location=75470)) - God have mercy on the Christian who will sell himself to the world for a bowl of pottage. Yes, Esau did sell out cheap, but many Christians also sell out cheap to the world today. The Devil could buy a lot of us, my friend. We so easily find ourselves going off again and again away from God and away from fellowship with Him. Oh, to be true to God in this hour in which we live! ([Location 75557](https://readwise.io/to_kindle?action=open&asin=B002NOGDJ8&location=75557)) - This chapter concludes in a most glorious way: God is going to make good His covenants with the nation Israel. The sin of these people, their rebellion, their constant departure from Him, their backsliding, will not annul, abrogate, or destroy God’s covenant with them. ([Location 75581](https://readwise.io/to_kindle?action=open&asin=B002NOGDJ8&location=75581)) - If the sins of the fathers come upon the children, it is because the children have followed the wickedness of their fathers. Every man shall be put to death for his own sin. We read in Deuteronomy 24:16, “The fathers shall not be put to death for the children, neither shall the children be put to death for the fathers: every man shall be put to death for his own sin.” ([Location 75668](https://readwise.io/to_kindle?action=open&asin=B002NOGDJ8&location=75668)) - God is saying that each man is judged in this life for the way he lives his life. Remember that He is not speaking of eternal life but about judgment here and now. ([Location 75697](https://readwise.io/to_kindle?action=open&asin=B002NOGDJ8&location=75697)) - Judgment against Pharaoh; Pharaoh’s greatness and glory; Pharaoh’s fall; lamentation over the fall ([Location 76528](https://readwise.io/to_kindle?action=open&asin=B002NOGDJ8&location=76528)) - This passage of Scripture opens up a new area altogether. Someone has called this the “Dante’s Inferno of the Bible.” ([Location 76617](https://readwise.io/to_kindle?action=open&asin=B002NOGDJ8&location=76617)) - I don’t look at the folks who have come forward; I look at the people who walk out after the benediction. Have they been warned? That should be our concern. We have been looking at the wrong crowd. We ([Location 76709](https://readwise.io/to_kindle?action=open&asin=B002NOGDJ8&location=76709)) - Oh, my friend, let’s make sure that the fellow who hears has been properly warned. If he is not warned, the speaker is held responsible. He will have to answer to God for neglecting his duty. ([Location 76712](https://readwise.io/to_kindle?action=open&asin=B002NOGDJ8&location=76712)) - Some Christians are judged for their sins by physical death. I am amazed that more folks don’t catch on to God’s discipline after a time. There are others who are in the Lord’s work, but what they are doing is not prospering, and they are getting deeper and deeper into debt. You would think that the message would come through loud and clear that perhaps God is moving in judgment, that what they are doing is not pleasing to Him. ([Location 76727](https://readwise.io/to_kindle?action=open&asin=B002NOGDJ8&location=76727)) - In 1 Peter 3:12 we read, “For the eyes of the Lord are over the righteous, and his ears are open unto their prayers: but the face of the Lord is against them that do evil.” God ([Location 76744](https://readwise.io/to_kindle?action=open&asin=B002NOGDJ8&location=76744)) - My friend, unbelief is willful; it is not because mankind has a great mentality that cannot accept what God says. The real problem is that people do not want to give up their sin. ([Location 76800](https://readwise.io/to_kindle?action=open&asin=B002NOGDJ8&location=76800)) - Very candidly, I have always been opposed to promotion—that is, furthering the growth or development of a Christian work. This does not mean that there aren’t many very wonderful and fine works which deserve our financial support. My point is that they should not be just a promotion agency; they should be feeding the people—they should be giving out the Word of God. I feel that an organization has no right to fleece people for an offering when it has not given the people something first. We should be able to support ministries where we ourselves have received a blessing. The business of the ministry is not to beg for money all the time, but to give out the Word of God and to be feeding the sheep. ([Location 76817](https://readwise.io/to_kindle?action=open&asin=B002NOGDJ8&location=76817)) - In other words, when people are not being fed in a church, they will scatter. They’ll go find some place where they can be fed. There is no point in criticizing them, because sheep want to be fed. That is also the nature of the child of God: he wants to hear the Word of God. ([Location 76832](https://readwise.io/to_kindle?action=open&asin=B002NOGDJ8&location=76832)) - The thing that impresses us in the rest of this chapter is the repetition of a wonderful statement by God, “I will,” which occurs eighteen times in verses 11 through 29. I get a little weary listening to men speak of what they have done. This is a new note here—God says, “I will.” This is grace when God says this. The Good Shepherd one day said, “Come unto me, all ye that labour and are heavy laden, and I will give you rest [rest you]” (Matt. 11:28, italics mine). The Shepherd also said, “I [will] give unto them eternal life; and they shall never perish …” (John 10:28). That is what my wonderful Shepherd said. ([Location 76851](https://readwise.io/to_kindle?action=open&asin=B002NOGDJ8&location=76851)) - It is my firm conviction that the earth will be the eternal home of Israel and that David will rule here on this earth throughout eternity. He will be vice-regent of the Lord Jesus. I believe the church will be in the New Jerusalem with the Lord—the Lord Jesus said that He was coming again to take the church, “… that where I am, there ye may be also” (John 14:3). And throughout eternity when He comes to earth, we will come also, but just for a visit. Therefore, don’t buy too much real estate down here—you won’t be needing it—but be sure you are sending up plenty of material to build a good home in heaven! ([Location 76896](https://readwise.io/to_kindle?action=open&asin=B002NOGDJ8&location=76896)) - Edom is the people descended from Esau, Jacob’s brother. Esau was Jacob’s bitterest enemy, and the people of Edom probably hurt the people of Israel more than any other enemy they had. Edom represents the enemy of God in this world today, that enemy who is going to rise against God in the last days under the Antichrist. ([Location 76929](https://readwise.io/to_kindle?action=open&asin=B002NOGDJ8&location=76929)) - In chapter 36 we find that Israel’s past sins must be judged and forgiven before she can be restored to the land. ([Location 76938](https://readwise.io/to_kindle?action=open&asin=B002NOGDJ8&location=76938)) - “And they shall say, This land that was desolate is become like the garden of Eden.” You can say that if you want to, but it wouldn’t be true today. “And they shall know that I am the LORD.” They don’t know that in Israel, they don’t know it in the United States, and they don’t know it in the world today. But the day is coming, my friend, when Israel will know that He is the Lord. ([Location 76999](https://readwise.io/to_kindle?action=open&asin=B002NOGDJ8&location=76999)) - The interpretation of this chapter concerns the future restoration of Israel. That restoration has to do both with the national entity of Israel as well as the spiritual revival or restoration which the Lord announced in the preceding chapter. ([Location 77007](https://readwise.io/to_kindle?action=open&asin=B002NOGDJ8&location=77007)) - Now what has happened to these bones has occurred in three stages: (1) they were scattered bones, just as dead as they could be; (2) then they came together, and flesh and skin came upon them—they were bodies, but dead bodies; and finally (3) they were made alive. We will find in these three stages a real key to understanding Bible prophecy concerning the nation Israel. ([Location 77076](https://readwise.io/to_kindle?action=open&asin=B002NOGDJ8&location=77076)) - The nation Israel was buried and scattered in the nations of the world, and was dead to God, dead to the things of God—that’s the first stage of the bones that we saw. Now since 1948 they have come back as a nation, but it is really a corpse over there today. They have a flag, they have a constitution, they have a prime minister, and they have a parliament. They have a police force and an army. They have a nation, and they even have Jerusalem. They have everything except spiritual life. If you walk from the old Arab section of Jerusalem where Islam dominates and come over into the Israeli section, there is no spiritual life. I want to say this kindly, but, as far as I am concerned, there is as much spiritual deadness on the one side as the other. There is a great deal more of that which is materialistic, which is intellectual, and which denotes civilization on the Israeli side, but there is no spiritual life whatsoever. This is symbolized by the second stage of the bones—bodies, but without life. That is where Israel stands today. ([Location 77100](https://readwise.io/to_kindle?action=open&asin=B002NOGDJ8&location=77100)) - I personally believe that God will raise up David to reign over Israel, either in the Millennium or in the eternal kingdom which will be ushered in immediately following the Millennium. ([Location 77118](https://readwise.io/to_kindle?action=open&asin=B002NOGDJ8&location=77118)) - We saw in chapter 37 that God has a definite purpose for Israel in the future, and these two chapters deal with that subject. They tell about the final enemy that will come against Israel in the last days. ([Location 77148](https://readwise.io/to_kindle?action=open&asin=B002NOGDJ8&location=77148)) - In chapters 38 and 39 I believe that the enemy mentioned is Russia. When I entered the ministry, I did not believe that it referred to Russia. ([Location 77150](https://readwise.io/to_kindle?action=open&asin=B002NOGDJ8&location=77150)) - Dean Stanley, in his exhaustive History of the Eastern Church, published half a century ago, has a note founded on Gesenius, the great Hebrew scholar, to the effect that the word Rosh should be Russia. Then Dean Stanley adds that this is the only reference to a modern nation in the entire Old Testament. This is indeed remarkable. ([Location 77162](https://readwise.io/to_kindle?action=open&asin=B002NOGDJ8&location=77162)) - Bishop Lowther made the statement that, Rosh taken as a proper name in Ezekiel signified the inhabitants of Scythia from whom the modern Russians derive their name. You see, Russia was first called Muscovy, derived from Meshech. Ivan the Fourth, a czar of Russia, who was called Ivan the Terrible, came to the Muscovite throne in 1533. He assumed the title of Czar, which was the first time the title was used. I am sure you detect that the names Meshech and Tubal certainly sound like Moscow, and Tobolsk, which is way over in Siberia. The linguistic phenomenon certainly leads us to believe that Ezekiel is talking about Russia in this passage. ([Location 77165](https://readwise.io/to_kindle?action=open&asin=B002NOGDJ8&location=77165)) - Now the second proof that identifies Russia is the geographic position. Here we have mentioned the nations which will be with Russia in the last days: “Gomer, and all his bands: the house of Togarmah of the north quarters, and all his bands: and many people with thee” (v. 6). “Gomer” is Germany, and “the house of Togarmah” is Turkey. “Of the north quarters” gives us the geographic location. ([Location 77170](https://readwise.io/to_kindle?action=open&asin=B002NOGDJ8&location=77170)) - you look at a map, you will find that Russia is directly north and northeast. In fact, it covers Israel just like that picture you have seen of the fellow under a great big sombrero. That hat covers him just like Russia covers the nation Israel. ([Location 77176](https://readwise.io/to_kindle?action=open&asin=B002NOGDJ8&location=77176)) - Directions in the Bible are in relation to the land of Israel. ([Location 77180](https://readwise.io/to_kindle?action=open&asin=B002NOGDJ8&location=77180)) - Mark Twain said concerning the land of Israel, “Palestine sits in sackcloth and ashes, desolate and unlovely. It is a hopeless, dreary, heartbroken land. And why should it be otherwise? Can the curse of the Deity beautify a land? Palestine is no more of this work-day world. It is sacred to poetry and tradition. It is dreamland.” ([Location 77239](https://readwise.io/to_kindle?action=open&asin=B002NOGDJ8&location=77239)) - With these tremendous events in mind, it would be well to pause a moment and consider the material we have studied. After a careful examination of three of the four major prophets: Isaiah, Jeremiah, and Ezekiel, certain great principles emerge, which the fourth prophet, Daniel, will confirm. These principles have an ageless application for nations of the world and for believers (when I say “believers,” I am speaking about those who have trusted the Lord Jesus Christ as Savior and believe that the Bible is the Word of God). In Ezekiel we have seen God dealing with Israel. My friend, when God says “Israel” He means Israel; He does not mean the church. How some can believe that God means the church when He says Israel is a flip on the flying trapeze of theology that is beyond me. Let’s allow God to mean what He says and realize that He has been dealing in these prophecies with the literal people of Israel. That is the correct interpretation. However, there is an application we can make since God’s dealing with Israel is a microcosm of His dealings with the world in which we live. The principles God has used in dealing with His own people Israel are eternal, for they are linked to the character and attributes of God. I have stated some of them in the Books of Isaiah and Jeremiah, and now I am prepared to draw certain conclusions from Ezekiel. No prophet emphasizes the glory and the holiness of God more than Ezekiel. He saw the glory of God—that was the great vision he had at the beginning of his book. He never forgot it. And we should not forget it either. His emphasis, therefore, is upon God’s judgment. God is longsuffering, not willing that any should perish, and He warned his people again and again that, if they did not turn to Him, He would judge Jerusalem. Then Jerusalem was destroyed, and Ezekiel offered the people encouragement as they looked into the future. “But,” he said, “another enemy is coming.” When the Lord Jesus Christ was on earth, He wept over the city of Jerusalem because He knew that Titus the Roman would be around in a few years to destroy the city, just as Nebuchadnezzar had done in the past. Things were wrong in Jerusalem; and, if that city was to enjoy the blessings of God, those things had to be made right. The liars should cease lying; the thieves should cease stealing; the lawless should become law-abiding; and righteousness should prevail in the city. Only when God was acknowledged and respected in the land could blessing rest upon Jerusalem. Righteousness must prevail before any nation or individual can experience the love, mercy, and goodness of God. Jerusalem was wrong—the people were thinking wrong; they were acting wrong. They were in sin, and God was right in judging them. God never blesses that which is wrong. This is made evident when we contrast Ezekiel with Jeremiah. I want you to notice this again because I consider it rather important. Jeremiah reveals the heart of God. God does not want to judge. As He said… ([Location 77329](https://readwise.io/to_kindle?action=open&asin=B002NOGDJ8&location=77329)) - Every time in Scripture that we find a man with a measuring rod—it generally is an angel, band it is an angel here—it means that God is getting ready to move again in dealing with His earthly people. We find this again in the minor prophets and in the Book of Revelation. ([Location 77425](https://readwise.io/to_kindle?action=open&asin=B002NOGDJ8&location=77425)) - In this section we are dealing with the worship in the temple. The sacrifices offered will be memorial in character. They will look back to the work of Christ on the cross, as the offerings of the Old Testament anticipated His sacrifice. In chapter 45 we will go into more detail about this. ([Location 77470](https://readwise.io/to_kindle?action=open&asin=B002NOGDJ8&location=77470)) - This prince is not the Lord Jesus Christ. I personally feel that the prince is David. There are many fine men who do not agree that it is David, but they do agree that it is not the Lord Jesus. Many of them feel that the prince is simply another man in the line of David. ([Location 77485](https://readwise.io/to_kindle?action=open&asin=B002NOGDJ8&location=77485)) - At this point we must answer a major question: Since all the sacrifices of the Old Testament were fulfilled in Christ, why are they restored again during the Millennium? This is a major argument that amillennialists have against the premillennial position. I personally find no conflict here. I feel that the sacrifices offered during the Millennium are going to look back to the coming of Christ and His death upon the cross in the same way that in our day the Lord’s Supper looks back to them. Someone will ask why the literal offering of sacrifices will be necessary. My friend, the human family has a great deal of difficulty learning a lesson. For the same reason, I believe that the literal blood of Christ is going to be in heaven. It will be there to reveal to us the horrible pit out of which we were digged. Our salvation from sin and hell unto heaven was a pretty big job, one that only God could undertake. The blood of Christ will be in heaven to remind the church of this, and the sacrifices will also be restored here on earth to reveal to the people of Israel how they were redeemed. ([Location 77503](https://readwise.io/to_kindle?action=open&asin=B002NOGDJ8&location=77503)) - The Book of Ezekiel has closed with a picture of the city, the millennial temple, and the land during the Millennium—all the curse is removed. What a picture we have here! It was round about eighteen thousand measures: and the name of the city from that day shall be, The LORD is there [Ezek. 48:35]. The prophet Ezekiel closes on a high note: “The LORD is there.” ([Location 77546](https://readwise.io/to_kindle?action=open&asin=B002NOGDJ8&location=77546)) - One fourth of the books in the Bible are of prophetic nature; the subject and statement of the books are eschatological, that is, they deal with prophecy. One fifth of the content of Scripture was predictive at the time of its writing; a large segment of that has been fulfilled. Therefore, the prophecy in Scripture can be divided into fulfilled and unfulfilled prophecy. We will find a great deal of fulfilled prophecy in Daniel. ([Location 77572](https://readwise.io/to_kindle?action=open&asin=B002NOGDJ8&location=77572)) - The main subject of prophecy is the Lord Jesus Christ. Other topics include Israel, the gentile nations, evil, Satan, the Man of Sin, the ([Location 77577](https://readwise.io/to_kindle?action=open&asin=B002NOGDJ8&location=77577)) - The church is also a subject of prophecy; however, the church is never mentioned in the Old Testament, and therefore there will be no reference to it in the Book of Daniel. Then, of course, there are the subjects of the kingdom, the Millennium, and eternity future. These are the great subjects of prophecy. ([Location 77578](https://readwise.io/to_kindle?action=open&asin=B002NOGDJ8&location=77578)) - The key verse to the Book of Daniel is Daniel 2:44: “And in the days of these kings shall the God of heaven set up a kingdom, which shall never be destroyed: and the kingdom shall not be left to other people, but it shall break in pieces and consume all these kingdoms, and it shall stand for ever.” ([Location 77639](https://readwise.io/to_kindle?action=open&asin=B002NOGDJ8&location=77639)) - All this came upon the king Nebuchadnezzar. At the end of twelve months he walked in the palace of the kingdom of Babylon. The king spake, and said, Is not this great Babylon, that I have built for the house of the kingdom by the might of my power, and for the honour of my majesty? [Dan. 4:28–30]. ([Location 78703](https://readwise.io/to_kindle?action=open&asin=B002NOGDJ8&location=78703)) - There have been a multitude of men and women throughout history who have tried to build little empires, and they have looked upon them with pride. I sometimes have opportunity to advise young preachers, and I tell them, “Look fellows, don’t try to build a little empire of your church. I started out with that viewpoint, and I’ll be honest with you, I have never been more disturbed or unhappy as I was then.” This passage of Scripture in Daniel really spoke to me one day, and I realized I was trying to be an empire builder—and that wasn’t what God intended for me to be. ([Location 78711](https://readwise.io/to_kindle?action=open&asin=B002NOGDJ8&location=78711)) - My ministry is building the lives of people, not trying to build a great empire. So I tell young preachers, “Start building in the lives of people, and I think the Lord will let you have what He wants you to have.” ([Location 78715](https://readwise.io/to_kindle?action=open&asin=B002NOGDJ8&location=78715)) - In dealing with any book of the Bible, we need to distinguish between what Dr. G. Campbell Morgan calls the essentials and the incidentals. The incidentals in the Book of Jonah are the fish, the gourd, the east wind, the boat, and even the city of Nineveh. The essentials here are Jehovah and Jonah—God and man—that is what the book is all about. ([Location 85582](https://readwise.io/to_kindle?action=open&asin=B002NOGDJ8&location=85582)) - God hath not promised skies always blue, Flower-strewn pathways all our lives through; God hath not promised sun without rain, Joy without sorrow, peace without pain. God hath not promised we shall not know Toil and temptation, trouble and woe; He hath not told us we shall not bear Many a burden, many a care. But God hath promised strength for the day, Rest for the laborer, light for the way, Grace for the trials, help from above, Unfailing sympathy, undying love. —Annie Johnson Flint ([Location 90039](https://readwise.io/to_kindle?action=open&asin=B002NOGDJ8&location=90039)) - 12 deals with the final siege of Jerusalem and the lifting of that siege. “Jerusalem” is mentioned ten times in this chapter, and “in that day” is mentioned seven times. These two expressions occur again and again. “In that day” is a reference to the Day of the Lord which begins with the Great Tribulation Period and eventuates and goes ([Location 94095](https://readwise.io/to_kindle?action=open&asin=B002NOGDJ8&location=94095)) - Apparently, some will be able to escape. There are those, including myself, who believe that it will probably be the rock-hewn city of Petra to which they will go. Masada would also be a good place. That is where the Jews escaped to at the time of the invasion by Titus in A.D. 70. The only thing is that Masada would sure be a good target for bombers if they went there. I believe that the rock-hewn city of Petra could be the place. ([Location 94624](https://readwise.io/to_kindle?action=open&asin=B002NOGDJ8&location=94624)) - When I was a pastor, I attempted one summer to run a series of sermons on rascals of revelation, scoundrels of Scripture, thieves of theology, bad men of the Bible, and crooks of Christianity. It was a long series because there were so many rogues! This steward is one of them. ([Location 108749](https://readwise.io/to_kindle?action=open&asin=B002NOGDJ8&location=108749)) - Every man, according to the world’s law, is considered innocent until he is proven guilty. The Word of God takes the opposite approach. God says that man is guilty until he is proven innocent. He says, “For all have sinned, and come short of the glory of God” (Rom. 3:23). A man can never be innocent before God, but he certainly can become justified before Him. “There is therefore now no condemnation to them which are in Christ Jesus …” (Rom. 8:1). When a man trusts Jesus Christ as his Savior, he is justified by faith. This is the only way a man can be justified. ([Location 108763](https://readwise.io/to_kindle?action=open&asin=B002NOGDJ8&location=108763)) - Man has a dying body. As someone has said, “The moment He gives us life, He begins to take it away from us.” ([Location 111181](https://readwise.io/to_kindle?action=open&asin=B002NOGDJ8&location=111181)) - want you to notice that it is not out of line nor even a mark of selfishness to pray for one’s self. I believe that when you and I go to God in prayer, we need to get our own hearts and lives right with God. We need to get in tune with heaven, as it were. Every instrument should be tuned up before it is played. Before you and I begin to pray for others, we need to pray for ourselves. That is not selfishness; it is essential. ([Location 114947](https://readwise.io/to_kindle?action=open&asin=B002NOGDJ8&location=114947)) - Now notice His prayer. It begins, “Father, the hour is come.” What hour? Well, the hour that had been set back yonder in eternity. As He speaks, the clock is striking the hour that was set way back in eternity, because He was the Lamb of God slain before the foundation of the world. It was arranged back there; now “the hour is come.” ([Location 114965](https://readwise.io/to_kindle?action=open&asin=B002NOGDJ8&location=114965)) - Future tense for God is just as accurate as past tense. ([Location 115005](https://readwise.io/to_kindle?action=open&asin=B002NOGDJ8&location=115005)) - Therefore the Epistle to the Galatians has a particular message for us because it was written to people who were like us in many ways. They had a like temper, and they were beset on every hand by cults and “isms” innumerable—which take us, likewise, from our moorings in the gospel of grace. ([Location 118281](https://readwise.io/to_kindle?action=open&asin=B002NOGDJ8&location=118281)) - 3. This epistle is a declaration of emancipation from legalism of any type. ([Location 118291](https://readwise.io/to_kindle?action=open&asin=B002NOGDJ8&location=118291)) - Paul is now a prisoner, and we will follow his life as a prisoner. From this point on we find Paul giving a defense of himself and his ministry. ([Location 120193](https://readwise.io/to_kindle?action=open&asin=B002NOGDJ8&location=120193)) - Romans contains the great gospel manifesto for the world. ([Location 121187](https://readwise.io/to_kindle?action=open&asin=B002NOGDJ8&location=121187)) - In the course of time, many Christians were drawn to the center of this great juggernaut. The saying that “all roads lead to Rome” was more than just a bromide. As Christians congregated in this great metropolis, a visible church came into existence. Probably no individual man established the church in Rome. Converts of Paul and the other apostles from the fringe of the empire went to Rome, and a local church was established by them. Certainly, Peter did not establish the church or have anything to do with it, as his sermon on Pentecost and following sermons were directed to Israelites only. Not until the conversion of Cornelius was Peter convinced that Gentiles were included in the body of believers. ([Location 121229](https://readwise.io/to_kindle?action=open&asin=B002NOGDJ8&location=121229)) - its great theme, which is the righteousness of God. ([Location 121236](https://readwise.io/to_kindle?action=open&asin=B002NOGDJ8&location=121236)) - Now I am convinced in my own mind that any ministry today that attempts to teach the glory of man—which does not present the total depravity of the human family and does not reveal that man is totally corrupt and is a ruined creature, any teaching that does not deal with this great truth—will not lift mankind, nor will it offer a remedy. The only remedy for man’s sin is the perfect remedy that we have in Christ, that which God has provided for a lost race. This is the great message of Romans. ([Location 121238](https://readwise.io/to_kindle?action=open&asin=B002NOGDJ8&location=121238)) - It was Godet, the Swiss commentator, who said that the Reformation was certainly the work of the Epistle to the Romans (and that of Galatians also) and that it is probable that every great spiritual renovation in the church will always be linked both in cause and in effect to a deeper knowledge of this book. ([Location 121246](https://readwise.io/to_kindle?action=open&asin=B002NOGDJ8&location=121246)) - Let me urge you to do something that will pay you amazing dividends: read the Book of Romans, and read it regularly. This epistle requires all the mental make-up we have, and in addition, it must be bathed in prayer and supplication so that the Holy Spirit can teach us. Yet every Christian should make an effort to know Romans, for this book will ground the believer in the faith. ([Location 121261](https://readwise.io/to_kindle?action=open&asin=B002NOGDJ8&location=121261)) - Romans teaches the total depravity of man. Man is irrevocably and hopelessly lost. He must have the righteousness of God since he has none of his own. ([Location 121382](https://readwise.io/to_kindle?action=open&asin=B002NOGDJ8&location=121382)) - It is interesting to note that this great document of Christian doctrine, which was addressed to the church at Rome to keep it from heresy, did not accomplish its purpose. The Roman church moved the farthest from the faith which is set forth in the Epistle to the Romans. It is an illustration of the truth of this epistle that man does not understand, neither does he seek after God. ([Location 121383](https://readwise.io/to_kindle?action=open&asin=B002NOGDJ8&location=121383)) - Verses 16 and 17 have long been recognized as the key to the epistle. These two verses should be memorized and the meaning of each word digested. The words will be dealt with individually when we come to them. ([Location 121386](https://readwise.io/to_kindle?action=open&asin=B002NOGDJ8&location=121386)) - Also he had the gift of healing, a gift that I do not believe is in existence today. When God heals in our day, He does it directly. I tell folk that I take my case directly to the Great Physician, not to one of the interns. I know that God heals, but He does not give that gift to men in our day. ([Location 121418](https://readwise.io/to_kindle?action=open&asin=B002NOGDJ8&location=121418)) - Paul was a separated Christian, but he was separated to something, not from something. I am afraid that many Christians today are only separated from something. When I hear some people talk, I get the idea that they are doing a spiritual striptease. They say, “I don’t do this and I don’t do that anymore.” Well, my friend, unto what are you separated? Paul tells us that the Thessalonians turned to God from idols. They did not get up in a testimonial meeting and say, “We do not go to the temple of Apollo anymore.” There was no need to say that because they were separated unto the Lord Jesus Christ. A Christian who is separated from something and not separated unto Christ will have a barren life. His life will be without joy, and he will become critical and sometimes cynical. ([Location 121426](https://readwise.io/to_kindle?action=open&asin=B002NOGDJ8&location=121426)) - Christ. ([Location 121495](https://readwise.io/to_kindle?action=open&asin=B002NOGDJ8&location=121495)) - Obedience to the faith is very important to God. God saves us by faith, not by works; but after He has saved us, He wants to talk to us about our works, about our obedience to Him. I hear many people talk about believing in Jesus, then they live like the Devil and seem to be serving him. My friend, saving faith makes you obedient to Jesus Christ. ([Location 121505](https://readwise.io/to_kindle?action=open&asin=B002NOGDJ8&location=121505)) - Is there a difference in faith? There surely is. The difference is in the object of your faith. For example, I believe in George Washington. I consider him a great man, our first president, the father of our country. Also, I believe in Jesus Christ. Now my faith in George Washington has never done anything for me. It has nothing to do with my salvation and has very little effect upon my life. But my faith in the Lord Jesus Christ is quite different. “Saving faith” brings us to the place where we surrender to the Son of God who loves us and gave Himself for us. While correct doctrine is very important, there is a discipline and a doing that goes with it. ([Location 121507](https://readwise.io/to_kindle?action=open&asin=B002NOGDJ8&location=121507)) - My favorite hymn has always been “Trust and Obey,” by Rev. J. H. Sammis. But we never can prove The delights of His love, Until all on the altar we lay, For the favor He shows, And the joy He bestows, Are for them who will trust and obey. Trust and obey, for there’s no other way To be happy in Jesus, but to trust and obey. ([Location 121514](https://readwise.io/to_kindle?action=open&asin=B002NOGDJ8&location=121514)) - The called are the elect. Who are the called? Well, they are those who have heard. The Lord Jesus made it clear when He said, “My sheep hear my voice, and I know them, and they follow me” (John 10:27). ([Location 121522](https://readwise.io/to_kindle?action=open&asin=B002NOGDJ8&location=121522)) - This concludes the profound parenthesis in the introduction to this letter to the Romans. Dr. James Stifler calls our attention to four features of this parenthesis: Paul has a message in accord with the Scriptures; the message is from the risen Christ; the message is universal; and the message is for the obedience to the faith. ([Location 121526](https://readwise.io/to_kindle?action=open&asin=B002NOGDJ8&location=121526)) - “Grace and peace” constitute the formal introduction in all of Paul’s letters. Grace (charis) was the Gentile form of greeting, while peace (shalom) was the Jewish form of greeting. Paul combined them. ([Location 121539](https://readwise.io/to_kindle?action=open&asin=B002NOGDJ8&location=121539)) - When a preacher does not want to teach the Word of God, he becomes a clergyman, he becomes an administrator, he becomes a promoter, but he is not a minister of the Word anymore. I know several men in this position. One man said, “I don’t enjoy preaching anymore.” I said, “For goodness sake, get out of the ministry. You have no business in the ministry if you don’t love to teach the Word of God!” ([Location 121561](https://readwise.io/to_kindle?action=open&asin=B002NOGDJ8&location=121561)) - “To the Greeks, and to the Barbarians” was the Greek division of all mankind. The Greeks were cultured, educated, and civilized. The barbarians were those whom we label pagan and heathen today. Actually, it is a false division, but it encompasses all mankind and was understood by Romans. ([Location 121579](https://readwise.io/to_kindle?action=open&asin=B002NOGDJ8&location=121579)) - I’m debtor—that is admission; I am ready—remission; I am not ashamed—submission. These are the three “missions” of Paul: admission, remission, and submission. ([Location 121602](https://readwise.io/to_kindle?action=open&asin=B002NOGDJ8&location=121602)) - It has power for a very definite thing: “It is the power of God unto salvation.” That is the end and the effect of the gospel. “Salvation” is the all-inclusive term of the gospel, and it simply means “deliverance.” It embraces everything from justification to glorification. It is both an act and a process. It is equally true that I have been saved, I am being saved, and I shall be saved. ([Location 121611](https://readwise.io/to_kindle?action=open&asin=B002NOGDJ8&location=121611)) - It is universal in scope, but it is limited to “every one that believeth.” This statement wraps up election and free will in one package. The only way of procuring salvation is by personal faith. ([Location 121616](https://readwise.io/to_kindle?action=open&asin=B002NOGDJ8&location=121616)) - Chronologically the gospel went to the Jew first. If you had been in Jerusalem on the Day of Pentecost, you would have seen an altogether Jewish meeting. ([Location 121619](https://readwise.io/to_kindle?action=open&asin=B002NOGDJ8&location=121619)) - The word for “righteousness” is dikaiosune. This word occurs ninety-two times in the New Testament, thirty-six times in Romans. The phrase “a righteousness from God” occurs eight times in this epistle. The root word dike means simply “right.” Justice and justify come from the same word. “To be right” is the primary meaning, which is the antonym of sin. Dr. Cremer gives this apt definition: “It is the state commanded by God and standing the test of His judgment; the character and acts of a man approved of Him, in virtue of which the man corresponds with Him and His will as His ideal and standard.” The righteousness he is talking about is what God demands, and it is what God provides—it is a righteousness that is from God. ([Location 121635](https://readwise.io/to_kindle?action=open&asin=B002NOGDJ8&location=121635)) - “As it is written” refers to Habakkuk 2:4, where the statement is made, “… the just shall live by his faith.” This is quoted in three great epistles of the New Testament: Romans, Galatians, and Hebrews. ([Location 121645](https://readwise.io/to_kindle?action=open&asin=B002NOGDJ8&location=121645)) - The wrath of God is God’s feeling, not His punishment of sin. It is His holy anger. Wrath is the antithesis of righteousness, and it is used here as a correlative. ([Location 121667](https://readwise.io/to_kindle?action=open&asin=B002NOGDJ8&location=121667)) - This is God’s constant and insistent displeasure with evil. ([Location 121671](https://readwise.io/to_kindle?action=open&asin=B002NOGDJ8&location=121671)) - The gospel has not changed God’s attitude toward sin. The gospel has made it possible to accept the sinner. The sinner must have either the righteousness or the wrath of God. ([Location 121672](https://readwise.io/to_kindle?action=open&asin=B002NOGDJ8&location=121672)) - “Against all ungodliness”—ungodliness is that which is against God. It is that which denies the character of God. ([Location 121676](https://readwise.io/to_kindle?action=open&asin=B002NOGDJ8&location=121676)) - I think the most ridiculous position man can hold is that of atheism. It is illogical and senseless. When the psalmist said, “The fool hath said in his heart, There is no God” (Ps. 14:1), the word for fool means “insane.” A man is insane when he denies the existence of God. ([Location 121698](https://readwise.io/to_kindle?action=open&asin=B002NOGDJ8&location=121698)) - Personally I do not like to see pictures of Jesus, as Paul said that we know Him no longer after the flesh (see 2 Cor. 5:16). He is the glorified Christ. He is not that picture you have hanging on your wall, my friend. If He came into your room, you would fall on your face before Him. He is the glorified Christ today. Don’t slur our God by having a picture of Him! ([Location 121735](https://readwise.io/to_kindle?action=open&asin=B002NOGDJ8&location=121735)) - In the Word of God the first record we have of idolatry is in connection with Rachel stealing her father’s idols (Gen. 31). Man descended downward; he did not develop upward. Religiously man has departed from God. ([Location 121741](https://readwise.io/to_kindle?action=open&asin=B002NOGDJ8&location=121741)) - “God gave them up” is literally God handed them over—it is positive, not a passive attitude. ([Location 121755](https://readwise.io/to_kindle?action=open&asin=B002NOGDJ8&location=121755)) - “Who exchanged the true God for the lie.” The suggestion is that they turned from God to Satan, the author of the lie and the father of idolatry. This is idolatry which led to the lowest depths of moral degradation. ([Location 121759](https://readwise.io/to_kindle?action=open&asin=B002NOGDJ8&location=121759)) - There are many people like the man on the top of the hill who looks down at the man at the bottom of the hill and says, “Something should be done for that poor fellow. We ought to start a mission down there. We should start giving him soup and clothes and a shower bath. I am living on the top of the hill, and I do not need anything.” The hurdle to meet the demands of God is just as high on top of the hill as it is at the bottom of the hill. The only difference is that the man at the bottom of the hill will probably see his need sooner than the man at the top of the hill. ([Location 121788](https://readwise.io/to_kindle?action=open&asin=B002NOGDJ8&location=121788)) - Now, the word here for “judge” carries the thought of judging with an adverse verdict. It can be translated, “Whosoever thou art that condemnest another.” Therefore this raises the question: What should be the attitude of a believer today toward this awful, horrible group who are mentioned in Romans 1? It should be this: We should want them to get saved; we should try to get the gospel to them; they are poor, lost creatures. It should be as the hymn writer, Fanny Crosby, expressed it: Rescue the perishing, Care for the dying, Snatch them in pity from sin and the grave; Weep o’er the erring ones, Lift up the fallen, Tell them of Jesus, the mighty to save. This should be our attitude, while making it clear that they need to be saved and delivered from perversion and immorality. ([Location 121813](https://readwise.io/to_kindle?action=open&asin=B002NOGDJ8&location=121813)) - “We enter this chapter with no condemnation, we close with no separation and in between all things work together for good to those that love God.” ([Location 123349](https://readwise.io/to_kindle?action=open&asin=B002NOGDJ8&location=123349)) - This chapter introduces us to the work of the Holy Spirit in sanctification. The Holy Spirit is mentioned nineteen times in this chapter. Up to chapter 8 there were only two casual references (see Rom. 5:5; 7:6). ([Location 123357](https://readwise.io/to_kindle?action=open&asin=B002NOGDJ8&location=123357)) - This little word for occurs seventeen times in this chapter. Because it is the cement that holds the chapter together, it is a word that requires real mental effort. ([Location 123377](https://readwise.io/to_kindle?action=open&asin=B002NOGDJ8&location=123377)) - . Man has a dying body. As someone has said, “The moment He gives us life, He begins to take it away from us.” ([Location 123659](https://readwise.io/to_kindle?action=open&asin=B002NOGDJ8&location=123659)) - Chapter 6 will deal with the subject of the Christian and his relation to the state. The Christian is told that he has a dual citizenship. I think that is often misconstrued by outsiders as well as by believers. Philippians 3:20 states: “For our conversation is in heaven; from whence also we look for the Saviour, the Lord Jesus Christ.” The Greek word for “conversation” is politeuma, which literally means “Our politics is in heaven; from whence also we look for the Saviour, the Lord Jesus Christ.” His citizenship in heaven does not relieve the Christian of his responsibility to the state. The Christian has a responsibility to each, that is, to God and to the state. Our Lord expressed this when the Herodians pressed on Him the subject of taxation. The Herodians asked, “Tell us therefore, What thinkest thou? Is it lawful to give tribute unto Caesar, or not?” (Matt. 22:17). Jesus answered, “… Render therefore unto Caesar the things which are Caesar’s; and unto God the things that are God’s” (Matt. 22:21). The Christian has a responsibility to the state, and he also has a responsibility to God. The Christian has both secular and spiritual responsibilities. The apostle Paul defines some very specific responsibilities of Christians to the state. There are certain guidelines which cannot be misunderstood. Paul writes in 1 Timothy 2:1–4: “I exhort therefore, that, first of all, supplications, prayers, intercessions, and giving of thanks, be made for all men; For kings, and for all that are in authority; that we may lead a quiet and peaceable life in all godliness and honesty. For this is good and acceptable in the sight of God our Saviour; Who will have all men to be saved, and to come unto the knowledge of the truth.” Our obligation to the state is to attempt to have a peaceful, law-abiding society with recognition of authority. Why is this so important for the Christian? It is in order that we might get out the message of the gospel. Paul discusses the same subject in Romans 13:1–4: “Let every soul be subject unto the higher powers. For there is no power but of God: the powers that be are ordained of God. Whosoever therefore resisteth the power, resisteth the ordinance of God: and they that resist shall receive to themselves damnation. For rulers are not a terror to good works, but to the evil. Wilt thou then not be afraid of the power? do that which is good, and thou shalt have praise of the same: For he is the minister of God to thee for good….” ([Location 126979](https://readwise.io/to_kindle?action=open&asin=B002NOGDJ8&location=126979)) - Church fights should not be aired in state courts before unbelievers. Individual differences among Christians should be adjudicated by believers. It is bad enough when two Christians are divorced, but it is an extremely serious matter when Christians go before a secular court and air their differences before unbelievers. When a Christian couple come to me and tell me they simply cannot get along, and I see there is no way of working out a reconciliation, I advise a legal separation, not a court trial. ([Location 127032](https://readwise.io/to_kindle?action=open&asin=B002NOGDJ8&location=127032)) - It says that they lusted after evil things. What were those things? Well, we can turn back and see: “And the mixed multitude that was among them fell a—lusting: and the children of Israel also wept again, and said, Who shall give us flesh to eat? We remember the fish, which we did eat in Egypt freely; the cucumbers, and the melons, and the leeks, and the onions, and the garlick: But now our soul is dried away: there is nothing at all, beside this manna, before our eyes” (Num. 11:4–6). They lusted, we are told, after evil things. What was wrong with leeks, onions, and garlic? Well, if they ate those things they wouldn’t be very desirable companions, but the point is that they lusted for that which was outside the will of God for them. This was the beginning of their defection. Have you noticed how many times it is desire that leads to sin? It started back in the Garden of Eden. “And when the woman saw that the tree was good for food, and that it was pleasant to the eyes, and a tree to be desired to make one wise, she took of the fruit thereof, and did eat, and gave also unto her husband with her; and he did eat” (Gen. 3:6). It was the desire for something outside the will of God. What is desire, after all? Psychologists talk about inhibitions and prohibitions, and they speak of desire as the supreme thing in life. What is desire? In these instances it was to want that which was outside of the will of God. It wasn’t God’s will for them to have those things at that particular time. ([Location 127691](https://readwise.io/to_kindle?action=open&asin=B002NOGDJ8&location=127691)) - This is an illustration of those who want those things that are outside the will of God. God always has something good for His people. That was true then, and it is still true now. But they constantly wanted something that was beyond God’s will for them. ([Location 127710](https://readwise.io/to_kindle?action=open&asin=B002NOGDJ8&location=127710)) - One of the reasons we yield to temptation is that we are like the little boy in the pantry. His mother heard a noise because he had taken down the cookie jar. She said, “Willie, where are you?” He answered that he was in the pantry. “What are you doing there?” He said, “I’m fighting temptation.” My friend, that is not the place to fight temptation! That is the place to start running. ([Location 127728](https://readwise.io/to_kindle?action=open&asin=B002NOGDJ8&location=127728)) - Although the Holy Spirit is sovereign in bestowing gifts, we have the right to ask God for the gift we want. He says we are to “covetearnestly the best gifts.” Not having been brought up in a Christian: home, I had no Christian training at all. When I went away to seminary, I didn’t even know the books of the Bible. I had graduated from college where the emphasis was placed on the intellectual and the philosophical, and I was trying to be that kind of preacher. Then I heard Dr. Harry Ironside speak. He explained Scripture in a simple manner. And I heard him make the statement, “Put the cookies on the bottom shelf so the kiddies can get them.” And I remembered that my Lord had said “Feed my sheep” (see John 21:16). He hadn’t said, “Feed my giraffes.” So I went to God and prayed, “Lord, I want to be that kind of preacher.” Later, I substituted for Dr. Ironside a Dallas Theological Seminary, and when he passed on, the seminary’s president, Dr. Lewis Sperry Chafer, called me on the phone He asked, “Would you take Dr. Ironside’s lectures here at the seminary?” I could hardly answer him clearly, and I almost rudely hung up the phone. I dropped to my knees, and confess that I wept as I thanked God. I said “Lord I prayed that You would let me teach like Dr. Ironside, and You have answered my prayer!” I coveted earnestly the best gift, and He answered my prayer. Although I am no Dr. Ironside, how I thrill today at the experience and the privilege of teaching the Word of God. My friend, you have the right to ask God for the best gift. ([Location 128380](https://readwise.io/to_kindle?action=open&asin=B002NOGDJ8&location=128380)) - There are three words in the Greek which are all translated by our one word love. There is the word eros. That is the word for passion, the word used for lust. It is used of Aphrodite and Eros, or Venus and Cupid as we more commonly know them. Sex would be our word for it today. This word does not occur in the New Testament at all. Then there is the word phileō which means “affection.” We find that root in our words Philadelphia and philanthropist. It means a love of man, a love of a brother. It means human love at its highest, a noble love. The word agapaō is the highest word for love in the New Testament and means “divine love.” It is more than love in the emotion; it is love in the will. It is love that chooses its object. It is a definition of God, for God is love. ([Location 128411](https://readwise.io/to_kindle?action=open&asin=B002NOGDJ8&location=128411)) - Paul visited the Galatian churches on each of his three missionary journeys. ([Location 131668](https://readwise.io/to_kindle?action=open&asin=B002NOGDJ8&location=131668)) - The word Galatians could be used either in an ethnographic sense, which would refer to the nationality of the people, or it could be used in a geographic sense, which would refer to the Roman province by that name. ([Location 131675](https://readwise.io/to_kindle?action=open&asin=B002NOGDJ8&location=131675)) - The people for whom the province was named were Gauls, a Celtic tribe from the same stock which inhabited France. ([Location 131678](https://readwise.io/to_kindle?action=open&asin=B002NOGDJ8&location=131678)) - They soon established themselves in Asia Minor. They liked it there. The climate was delightful, and the country was beautiful. When I visited Turkey, I was pleasantly surprised to find how lovely it is along the Aegean and inland, also along the Mediterranean. ([Location 131681](https://readwise.io/to_kindle?action=open&asin=B002NOGDJ8&location=131681)) - They actually were blond Orientals. ([Location 131684](https://readwise.io/to_kindle?action=open&asin=B002NOGDJ8&location=131684)) - These Gallic Celts had much of the same temperament and characteristics of the American population, that is, of those who came out of Europe or England. ([Location 131686](https://readwise.io/to_kindle?action=open&asin=B002NOGDJ8&location=131686)) - Caesar said of them: “The infirmity of the Gauls is that they are fickle in their resolves, fond of change, and not to be trusted.” This description fits the majority of Americans in our day. ([Location 131688](https://readwise.io/to_kindle?action=open&asin=B002NOGDJ8&location=131688)) - Another described them as “frank, impetuous, impressible, eminently intelligent, fond of show, but extremely inconstant, the fruit of excessive vanity.” That is a picture of the American population today. ([Location 131690](https://readwise.io/to_kindle?action=open&asin=B002NOGDJ8&location=131690)) - In the Book of Acts we read that the Galatians wanted to make Paul a god one day, and the next day they stoned him. What do we do? We elect a man to the presidency and then we try to kill him in office. ([Location 131694](https://readwise.io/to_kindle?action=open&asin=B002NOGDJ8&location=131694)) - Therefore the Epistle to the Galatians has a particular message for us because it was written to people who were like us in many ways. They had a like temper, and they were beset on every hand by cults and “isms” innumerable—which take us, likewise, from our moorings in the gospel of grace. 1. It is a stern, severe, and solemn message (see Gal. 1:6–9; 3:1–5). ([Location 131696](https://readwise.io/to_kindle?action=open&asin=B002NOGDJ8&location=131696)) - The epistle, therefore, contains no word of commendation, praise, or thanksgiving. There is no request for prayer, and there is no mention of their standing in Christ. No one with him is mentioned by name. ([Location 131701](https://readwise.io/to_kindle?action=open&asin=B002NOGDJ8&location=131701)) - 2. In this epistle the heart of Paul the apostle is laid bare, and there is deep emotion and strong feeling. This is his fighting epistle—he has on his war paint. ([Location 131703](https://readwise.io/to_kindle?action=open&asin=B002NOGDJ8&location=131703)) - ” 3. This epistle is a declaration of emancipation from legalism of any type. ([Location 131707](https://readwise.io/to_kindle?action=open&asin=B002NOGDJ8&location=131707)) - In a sense I believe this epistle has been the backbone and background for every great spiritual movement and revival that has taken place in the past nineteen hundred years. ([Location 131717](https://readwise.io/to_kindle?action=open&asin=B002NOGDJ8&location=131717)) - 4. Galatians is the strongest declaration and defense of the doctrine of justification by faith in or out of Scripture. ([Location 131720](https://readwise.io/to_kindle?action=open&asin=B002NOGDJ8&location=131720)) - Even a slight indulgence brings about a revulsion and agony of soul. I have made this statement many times, and I repeat it again: If you can get into sin and not be troubled or bothered by it, you are not a child of God. I do not think there is any other alternative. ([Location 135992](https://readwise.io/to_kindle?action=open&asin=B002NOGDJ8&location=135992)) - The fact that Paul’s and Titus’ ministry on Crete is not mentioned in Acts reveals that the Book of Acts does not contain all the record of the early church. Actually, it is a very small record, and only the ministries of two of the apostles are emphasized: Peter in the first part of the book and Paul in the second part. We do not have a complete record of even these two men’s ministries. ([Location 144131](https://readwise.io/to_kindle?action=open&asin=B002NOGDJ8&location=144131)) - These letters also prove very profitable to us today. We have so much other instruction relative to the local church—I suppose we could fill a whole library with the books that have been written on how to run the local church. In Scripture we have only these three epistles, and they are very brief; yet they do give us the essential modus operandi for the church. What they do impress upon us is that if there is a lack or a need in a church, it isn’t a problem with the organization or with the system that is being used. Rather, if there is a need in a church, it is a spiritual need. ([Location 144143](https://readwise.io/to_kindle?action=open&asin=B002NOGDJ8&location=144143)) - The ideal church, according to this epistle, (1) has an orderly organization, (2) is sound in doctrine, and (3) is pure in life, ready to every good work. This is the picture of the New Testament church that this epistle to Titus presents to us. ([Location 144165](https://readwise.io/to_kindle?action=open&asin=B002NOGDJ8&location=144165)) - In Timothy the emphasis was upon the need for sound teaching in the church. In Titus the emphasis is put upon the importance of God’s order for the conduct of the churches. ([Location 144166](https://readwise.io/to_kindle?action=open&asin=B002NOGDJ8&location=144166)) - Many Christian organizations are so concerned with getting in the finances to carry on their program that they become more interested in getting people to give than in helping those people. A lot of folk need help—not just spiritual help but also physical help. We need to do things for people, to help them with their physical needs. ([Location 144188](https://readwise.io/to_kindle?action=open&asin=B002NOGDJ8&location=144188)) - Yet in this book that gives the genealogies, Melchizedek just walks out onto the pages of Scripture, out of nowhere, then he walks off the pages of Scripture, and we do not see him anymore. ([Location 146788](https://readwise.io/to_kindle?action=open&asin=B002NOGDJ8&location=146788)) - Yet the inscription on the cathedral in Lübeck, Germany, is still true: Thus speaketh Christ our Lord to us: Ye call Me Master and obey Me not. Ye call Me Light and see Me not. Ye call Me Way and walk Me not. Ye call Me Life and choose Me not. Ye call Me Wise and follow Me not. Ye call Me Fair and love Me not. Ye call Me Rich and ask Me not. Ye call Me Eternal and seek Me not. Ye call Me Noble and serve Me not. Ye call Me Gracious and trust Me not. Ye call Me Might and honor Me not. Ye call Me Just and fear Me not. If I condemn you, blame Me not. This is the church in Laodicea. ([Location 160774](https://readwise.io/to_kindle?action=open&asin=B002NOGDJ8&location=160774)) - To the church at Ephesus, there was a warning given that is also for us today. It was a warning of the danger of getting away from the best love, that is, getting away from a personal and loving relationship with Jesus Christ. The real test of any believer, especially those who are attempting to serve Him, is not your little method or mode or system or your dedication or any of the things that are so often emphasized today. The one question is: Do you love Him? Do you love the Lord Jesus? When you love Him, you will be in a right relationship with Him, but when you begin to depart from the person of Christ, it will finally lead to lukewarmness. The ([Location 160847](https://readwise.io/to_kindle?action=open&asin=B002NOGDJ8&location=160847)) - The Lord Jesus told the church in Smyrna not to fear suffering. Believe me, that is one thing that we in the church are frightened of today. We do not want to pay a price for serving the Lord Jesus, and yet that is His method. ([Location 160853](https://readwise.io/to_kindle?action=open&asin=B002NOGDJ8&location=160853)) - There is a grave danger in wrong doctrine today, and that was the thing that was wrong in the church in Pergamum. ([Location 160857](https://readwise.io/to_kindle?action=open&asin=B002NOGDJ8&location=160857)) - To the church in Thyatira He said, “Notwithstanding I have a few things against thee, because thou sufferest that woman Jezebel, which calleth herself a prophetess, to teach and to seduce my servants to commit fornication, and to eat things sacrificed unto idols” (Rev. 2:20). The “new morality” is a grave danger for many today. Some folk think they can accept Christ and then live on a low plane. You will not get by with it, my friend, if you are His child. In the church in Sardis, the Protestant church, there was the danger of spiritual deadness. He said, “I know thy works, that thou hast a name that thou livest, and art dead” (v. 1). What about your church, brother? Is it alive? Are you alive? Or are you dead in a dead church today? Many folk are in that condition, and yet they talk about holding the historic doctrines of the faith. But, my friend, the glaring defect in Protestantism today is deadness. And that is the worst thing of all. ([Location 160858](https://readwise.io/to_kindle?action=open&asin=B002NOGDJ8&location=160858)) - The church in Philadelphia was not in any grave danger. The Lord Jesus does not condemn that church at all, but He does say, “Behold, I come quickly: hold that fast which thou hast, that no man take thy crown” (v. 11). What was it they had? He had commended them because they had kept His Word. ([Location 160865](https://readwise.io/to_kindle?action=open&asin=B002NOGDJ8&location=160865)) - To the church in Laodicea the Lord Jesus said, “So then because thou art lukewarm, and neither cold nor hot, I will spue thee out of my mouth” (v. 16). This is the apostate church which professes to be Christian but lacks reality. But even to this church He issues a final call to repentance and an invitation to come to Himself. ([Location 160871](https://readwise.io/to_kindle?action=open&asin=B002NOGDJ8&location=160871)) - Chapters 4–22 comprise the final major division of this very wonderful book. John was given the division of this book, and he passed it on to us. We ought not to miss it, for He said in chapter 1, verse 19, “Write the things which thou hast seen, and the things which are, and the things which shall be hereafter”—that is, meta tauta, meaning “after these things.” “Things which must be hereafter” of verse 1 corresponds to “the things which shall be hereafter” of chapter 1, verse 19. Both are meta tauta in the Greek, indicating a change from this to an entirely different scene and subject. ([Location 160886](https://readwise.io/to_kindle?action=open&asin=B002NOGDJ8&location=160886)) - 1. The church is no longer seen in the world, although up to chapter 4, there have been nineteen references to the church in the world. ([Location 160893](https://readwise.io/to_kindle?action=open&asin=B002NOGDJ8&location=160893)) - 2. The scene definitely shifts to heaven in chapter 4. Since the church is still the subject, we follow it now to its new home—heaven. How did the church get to heaven? This is a good question, and Paul gives the answer: “Then we which are alive and remain shall be caught up together with them in the clouds, to meet the Lord in the air: and so shall we ever be with the Lord” (1 Thess. 4:17). He defines the operation in 1 Corinthians 15:51–52: “Behold, I shew you a mystery; We shall not all sleep, but we shall all be changed, In a moment, in the twinkling of an eye, at the last trump: for the trumpet shall sound, and the dead shall be raised incorruptible, and we shall be changed.” ([Location 160899](https://readwise.io/to_kindle?action=open&asin=B002NOGDJ8&location=160899)) - 3. The church is not a name but a definition of those who have trusted Christ in this age. This is something which we need to get fixed in our minds because our thinking on this today is often muddled. The word church is ekklesia in the Greek; kaleō means “to call,” and ek means “out of.” Therefore, ekklesia means “a group of people called out of the world.” ([Location 160907](https://readwise.io/to_kindle?action=open&asin=B002NOGDJ8&location=160907)) - The apostate organization, which bears the ecclesiastical terminology and continues on in the world, is not hereafter given the title of “church” either, but the frightful label of “the harlot.” The late Dr. George Gill said years ago in a seminary class, “There are going to be some churches which will meet the next Sunday after the Rapture, and they won’t be missing a member—they will all be there.” Why? Because it is the church of Laodicea—that is, it professes to be Christian but lacks reality. ([Location 160913](https://readwise.io/to_kindle?action=open&asin=B002NOGDJ8&location=160913)) - 4. The judgments beginning at chapter 6 would not be in harmony with the gracious provision and promise that God has made to the church. If the church remained in the world, it would frustrate the grace of God because He has promised to deliver us from judgment. ([Location 160917](https://readwise.io/to_kindle?action=open&asin=B002NOGDJ8&location=160917)) - 5. Finally, to continue from chapter 3 to chapter 4 without recognizing the break is to ignore the normal and natural division in the book as stated in chapter 1, verse 19. ([Location 160919](https://readwise.io/to_kindle?action=open&asin=B002NOGDJ8&location=160919)) - Let me make more or less of a confession. Since I have retired from the pastorate, I have set before me a goal: I want to know Jesus better than I do now. I get up every morning and look out the window—I did this morning and in Southern California it is foggy—but I say, “Lord, thank You for bringing me to another day. I love You. I love You, Lord Jesus, but, oh, You seem to be so far away at times. I want to know You. May the Spirit of God make You real to me.” The name Jesus—oh, what it means, and what a person He is! ([Location 165613](https://readwise.io/to_kindle?action=open&asin=B002NOGDJ8&location=165613))