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"I now send you [to the Gentiles*] to open their eyes, in order to turn them from darkness to light, and from the power of Satan to God, THAT THEY MAY RECEIVE FORGIVENESS OF SINS AND AN INHERITANCE among those who are sanctified by faith in Me." - Jesus, to Saul/Paul on the Damascus Road (Acts 26:18)Dear hearts, Jesus died SO THAT YOU MAY BE FORGIVEN,  no matter what you have done, no matter how bad you think you are. HE LOVES *YOU*, and He loved you enough to die for you. No matter what you have done, no matter how terrible you feel about yourself - He knows all about it, and He STILL loves you.Won't you bow down right now and THANK HIM for that tremendous Love He has given you, and ACCEPT the forgiveness He is holding out to you in those beautiful, nail-pierced hands? The gift of forgiveness is free for the taking, and your Friend Jesus is waiting to wrap His loving arms around you and lead you Home to glory. FORGIVENESS IS THE GIFT WE NEED TO SAY YES TO. FORGIVENESS BRINGS WITH IT OUR SALVATION. OUR FORGIVENESS IS WHAT JESUS SHED HIS BLOOD TO BUY FROM SATAN. WON'T YOU REACH OUT YOUR SIN-STAINED HANDS AND ACCEPT IT FROM HIM IN HUMBLE GRATITUDE - RIGHT NOW? Who IS Jesus, anyway? An over-view before you start: - MATTHEW, MARK, LUKE and JOHN are the four GOSPELS. They deal with Jesus' time on earth from four different perspectives, and address different audiences; their messages differ slightly to serve the people to whom they speak. - ACTS tells of the ACTS OF THE APOSTLES: what Jesus' followers did, where they went, how they were received, when-where-how they got their power, what they taught - that kind of thing. One of the first things I noticed when I started to study the Bible many years ago was the change that came over Saul. Flipping back a few pages you will find him holding the cloaks of those who were stoning Stephen to death... but we meet him in ACTS "minutes" later, and he is the great PAUL, who went from persecuting the followers of Christ to preaching Christ throughout the known world for decades!, and undergoing terrible tortures in doing so!! The next books were all LETTERS written by people who knew Jesus personally: - ROMANS, 1st & 2nd CORINTHIANS, GALATIANS, EPHESIANS, PHILIPPIANS, COLOSSIANS, 1st & 2nd THESSALONIANS, 1st & 2nd TIMOTHY, TITUS, PHILEMON and HEBREWS were all letters Paul (formerly known as Saul) sent to guide and instruct new believers he had brought to know Jesus. - JAMES was a letter written by James, a brother of Jesus Christ. - 1st & 2nd PETER were letters written by Peter, The Big Fisherman, the disciple who denied knowing Jesus when he was on trial for his life before the crucifixion - the disciple Jesus told, at the Last Supper, he would deny him thrice before a rooster crowed twice the next morning - the disciple Jesus later told, "Feed my sheep; feed my lambs." - 1st, 2nd & 3rd JOHN were letters written by John, another disciple of Jesus. - JUDE was written by Jude, brother of James and a servant of Jesus Christ. and last but definitely not least, we have (drumroll, please...): - REVELATION, which is THE REVELATION GIVEN BY GOD TO JESUS CHRIST! Quoting from the book itself, Chapter 1, verses 1 and 2, New English Bible, we learn the following: This is the revelation given by God to Jesus Christ. It was given to him so that he might show his servants what must shortly happen. He made it known by sending his angels to his servant John, who, in telling all that he saw, has borne witness to the word of God and to the testimony of Jesus Christ. Read/listen to, STUDY DILIGENTLY*, discuss, meditate upon, ponder the New Testament book of...
* NOTE 1: The above schedule gives you just the barest of glimpses into the Word of God. That Word is absolutely infallible and totally dependable. What it says is going to happen, WILL happen - "unless...". Unless humanity bows down before its Creator in humble repentance and submits to His perfect plan, honestly and fervently repenting of its rebellion and vaunted prideful independence. STUDY the Word of God, verse by verse, point by point, minute by minute, and ask Him to open your eyes that you may fully understand the spiritual truths underlying the text you've just read. JUST reading as you would any ordinary book is NOT sufficient. It is *diligence* that bears dividends with God. Reach out to Him through His Word, and you will find Him ever present to hear your cry and meet your need. ** NOTE 2: These are NOT readings as I would suggest them myself. I see little purpose in rushing through letter after letter in order to meet an arbitrary 40-day deadline, especially since I know others who have been led by the Lord to devote a full YEAR to the study of one CHAPTER of a particular book. There is much to be learned from God's Word, dear friend, and much to be gained from seeking that knowledge. Do not begrudge the time spent in His company, studying the Words of Life He has recorded there for your benefit. These words may yet save your immortal soul and deliver you from the jaws of hell! *** NOTE 3: Despite my criticisms of the above 40-day reading plan as set forth above, I am deeply grateful to - and eternally humbled by - Pastor Steve of THE MESSAGE OF LOVE AND CHEER (ThePastor@Yahoo.com) for being obedient to the Lord's leading and preparing this 40 Day New Testament Reading/Listening Plan. May God bless it to your reading, and bless each one of you in proportion as you devote yourselves to understanding that which you read! In Jesus' precious Name I ask it. Amen. |
Updated February 21, 2008
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