Showing titles in Commentaries

In summary, what was Jesus saying to those people in this first part of His sermon? First, He was telling them to be poor in spirit, which meant that they should have a heart and a mind that would be open to His instructions. Second, He had made some specific promises to those who are poor in spirit, mourning over their spiritual condition, meek, hungering and thirsting after righteousness, merciful, pure in heart, and makers of peace. He had spoken to those who would be persecuted for His name's sake. He spoke to those who have a responsibility to be salt and light. Third, He shared His ...

In the first part of the Sermon on the Mount, Jesus had made four points. First, He had been telling them to be poor in spirit, which meant that they should have a heart and mind that would be open to His instructions. Second, He had made some specific promises to those who are poor in spirit, mourning over their spiritual condition, meek, hungering and thirsting after righteousness, merciful, pure in heart, and makers of peace. He had spoken to those people who would be persecuted for His name's sake. He had spoken to those who have a responsibility to be salt and light. Third, He had ...

This short book has been written to share a couple of very important spiritual truths. The first, called the Eternality of Bible Truth, maintains that every word of the Bible has always been true even before it was spoken or written. The second truth is that the Old Testament saints probably did not hear God's audible, out loud voice. That simple statement is not meant to sound heretical. Those words are also not meant to deny anything that Christians have traditionally believed about God. The real message is that what we have many times just accepted as truth in the Bible may in fact not ...

This book contains a series of short essays that discuss twenty-five of the important promises from the Lord that have been stated in the scriptures. Each of the essays is basically independent of the others. But at the same time, they have also been ordered somewhat loosely from most important to least important based upon logical order. The Lord promises to love every person. He promises to be found but not indefinitely. He promises grace for salvation and living. He promises goodness and mercy. He promises salvation that cannot be lost. He promises to not be bought. He promises to resist...

Ten places in the Bible, mention is made about events and decisions that were made from, before, or since the foundation of the world. Four of those occasions were spoken by Jesus during His public ministry. One was written by the Apostle Paul. One was written by the Apostle Peter. Two occurrences were included in the book of Hebrews. Two occurrences were mentioned in the book of Revelation. In chapters one through three of this text, two of the writings about events and decisions from the foundation of the world will be shared. First, Jesus taught secrets about the Word of God and secrets ...

In our politically unstable day of "wars and rumors of wars" (Mark13:7), we can all understand the quest for stability. But there is only one source of rock solid security. There was a time for rules and sacrifices. Then Christ came as the perfect, spotless Lamb to atone for sin once and for all. Respected pastor Dr. Warren W. Wiersbe will show you that by focusing on the reality of the unseen first, an overwhelming desire for intimate friendship with God will follow.

The idea with this text is that the Proverbs life is a much better life. The reason for saying that is because it leads to either no unpleasant consequences or to very few unpleasant consequences. So this text is about improving a person's decision-making skills, about reducing the unpleasant consequences that result from bad decisions, and about showing that the Proverbs life produces a much better life. There is one main theme that is presented throughout. If people want to live a good life and experience very few unpleasant consequences, then they need to study the scriptures, ...

Does your knowledge of the Old Testament feel like a grab bag of people, books, events, and ideas? How many times have you resolved to really understand the OT? To finally make sense of it? Perhaps you are suffering from what Sandra Richter calls the "dysfunctional closet syndrome". If so, she has a solution. Like a home-organizing expert, she comes in and helps you straighten up your cluttered closet. Whether you are a frustrated do-it-yourselfer or a beginning student enrolled in a course, The Epic of Eden will organize your understanding of the Old Testament.

Escaping from Eden will take you on a journey around the world and into the mythologies of ancient Sumeria, Mesoamerica, India, Africa, and Greece, to reveal a profound secret, hidden in plain sight in the text of the Bible.

Even people who are not professing Christians think they are familiar with the story of the Nativity. Every Christmas, displays of Jesus resting in a manger populate lawns and churchyards, and songs about shepherds and angels fill the air. Yet despite the abundance of these Christian references in popular culture, how many of us have examined the hard edges of this biblical story? Timothy Keller takes listeners on an illuminating journey into the surprising background of the Nativity.

Taking his trademark intellectual approach to understanding Christianity, Timothy Keller uncovers the essential message of Jesus, locked inside his most familiar parable. Within that parable Jesus reveals God's prodigal grace toward both the irreligious and the moralistic. This book will challenge both the devout and skeptics to see Christianity in a whole new way.

More than just a guide to understanding Galatians, best-selling author Warren Wiersbe's Be Free is also a guide to embracing freedom in Christ. As a man who is known as the "pastor of pastors" and has studied the Bible relentlessly, gleaning relevance for today for his readers and listeners, Wiersbe has so gripped the hearts of his wide audience that he has sold over 4 million copies of his "Be" series alone!

In spite of his dire situation as a prisoner a Roman jail, Paul`s letter to the church at Philippi overflows with joy. Discover Paul's secret to finding joy in Christ as Dr. Warren Wiersbe leads you on verse-by-verse tour through the book of Philippians. Take notice of Paul's single-minded focus remains on Jesus and learn how your joy can also be complete in Christ.

Letters to the Church: Audio Lectures introduces the cultural and theological background of Hebrews and the general epistles (James through Jude). These letters, by respected New Testament scholar Karen H. Jobes, cover the historical background for each book focusing on authorship, genre, date, and content, as well as an exploration of the major themes in each book.

In this astute mix of cultural critique and biblical studies, John H. Walton presents and defends twenty propositions supporting a literary and theological understanding of Genesis 1 within the context of the ancient Near Eastern world and unpacks its implications for our modern scientific understanding of origins. Ideal for students, professors, pastors, and lay listeners with an interest in the intelligent design controversy and creation-evolution debates, Walton's thoughtful analysis unpacks seldom appreciated aspects of the biblical text and sets Bible-believing scientists free.

Lament is how we bring our sorrow to God - but it is a neglected dimension of the Christian life for many Christians today. We need to recover the practice of honest spiritual struggle that gives us permission to vocalize our pain and wrestle with our sorrow. Lament avoids trite answers and quick solutions, progressively moving us toward deeper worship and trust.

We are destined for glory. Through the stories of Abraham, Isaac, and Jacob, we discover the Creator’s deep longing for connection with every nation, tribe, and tongue. Brian and Candice Simmons continue their in-depth study of the Book of Genesis in this second volume, covering chapters 12 through 35.

In Twisted Unto Destruction, Donald J. Johnson (Convinced, Unprotected) shows how ditching the Church in favor of private Bible interpretation has also enabled some of the modern world’s worst crimes and vices. Once an Evangelical Protestant who took sola scriptura for granted, Johnson came to realize that setting ourselves up as little Magisteriums—whose opinions on the Bible’s meaning have to be as valid as anyone else’s—not only leads to endless splintering, but makes it possible to use Scripture to justify anything.

For decades, The God Who Is There has been the landmark book that changed the way the church sees the world. In Francis Schaeffer's remarkable analysis, we learn where the clashing ideas about God, science, history, and art came from and where they are going. This edition includes a foreword by James W. Sire that places Schaeffer's seminal work in the context of the intellectual turbulence of the early 21st century.

Romans: An Expositional Commentary, Vol. 1 discusses the full impact of justification by faith alone. Boice uses stories and hymns to present the thoughts of Paul in a poetic form and provides word studies based on the Greek text to add meaning and enrichment to Paul’s words.