Issue 15.2

Glad Tidings The flowers appear on the earth; The time of the singing of birds is come, And the voice of the turtle-dove is heard in our land; Solomon 2:12

Volume 15, Issue 2

March/April 2011

Glad Tidings March/April 2011 Something To Consider ......................... p. 3

Glad Tidings

by Vince Finnegan

is published six times per year by

God’s Wisdom ........................................ p. 4

Living Hope International Ministries

by Vince Finnegan Congo Connection ................................. p. 6

458 Old Niskayuna Road,

by Richard and Cheryl Elton

Latham, New York 12110 USA

Stop Thinking About Yourself............... p.7

by Vince Finnegan

Office

518.785.8888

Psalm 117:

Fax

518.785.1990

Praise Yahweh All Nations .................... p.9

E-mail

info@kingdomready.org

Website www.kingdomready.org

by Sean Finnegan Unwavering Steadfastness And Loyalty To Yahweh ........................ p.12

by Mary Ann Yaconis Study The Scriptures ............................. p.14

Glad Tidings is mailed free to anyone who requests it.

Scriptures are taken from the New American Standard Bible unless otherwise noted.

by Vince Finnegan

April 29th - May 1st Women’s Advance

mark these important dates on your calendar!!

June 26th - July 2nd Family Camp 2011, Silver Bay July 31st - August 6th Teen Camp 2011, Silver Bay September 9th - 11th Royal Family Reunion 2

SOMETHING TO CONSIDER: God our Father loves us and continually desires to help us, which is why His consistent encouragement is for us to pray. “The eyes of the LORD are on the righteous, and His ears are open to their cry,” Psalms 34:15. Yahweh is always present with us and is looking for opportunity to bless and guide us as we navigate our way through the troubled waters of this life. His willingness and ability are unquestionable with the only restraint coming from our willingness to seek His help.

We must acknowledge our need and seek His assistance because He will not violate our free will.

Psalms 10:17 O LORD, You have heard the desire of the humble; You will strengthen their heart, You will incline Your ear.

Psalms 145:18 and 19 The LORD is near to all who call upon Him, To all who call upon Him in truth. He will fulfill the desire of those who fear Him; He will also hear their cry and will save them.

The Apostle Paul in the book of Corinthians asks a somewhat outlandish question that has an obvious answer − “Who has known the mind of the Lord that he can instruct Him.” The mind of the one who created the heavens and the earth, who lives in eternity, is incomprehensible and superior to man’s minuscule brain. He knows our weaknesses and limitations and offers to provide His wisdom to us if we ask in faith. James 1:5 tells of God’s loving kindness in this regard: “If any of you lacks wisdom, let him ask of God, who gives to all generously and without reproach, and it will be given to him.”

Again, our Father loves us and takes pleasure in answering our prayers. Proverbs 15:8 states, “The prayer of the upright is His delight.”

The revelation communicated by Jeremiah spans the ages: Jeremiah 29:12-14 ‘Then shall you call on Me, and you shall go and pray to Me, and I will listen to you. And you shall seek Me, and find Me, when you shall search for Me with all your heart. And I will be found of you, said the LORD.” Delight God – PRAY! God’s best to you,

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God’s Wisdom

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ames 3:17 and 18 “But the wisdom from above is first pure, then peaceable, gentle, reasonable, full of mercy and good fr uits , u n wave ri ng, without hypocrisy. And the seed whose fruit is righteousness is sown in peace by those who make peace.”

God’s wisdom is the opposite.

God’s Wisdom Pure - God is holy, holy, holy; therefore, His wisdom is pure. God’s perspective is without one speck of sin, filth, unrighteousness, darkness, perversion, ignorance, lopsidedness, or selfishness. It is pure without any foreign mixture included and therefore impervious to human influences.

Man’s

wisdom, on the other hand, is always tainted with selfinterest and faulty reasoning emanating from a sinful mind.

Peaceable – God’s wisdom to the meek is peaceable; whereas, it is unsettling and annoying to the prideful. Insight that comes from God brings peace fi t ting wel l within the heart of the humble.

Human wisdom 4

By: Vince Finnegan

often causes unrest, turmoil, confusion, anxiety, trouble, and uproar. Man tends to get frantic, uptight, and to force his ways into place. Some of the most revered “wise” men in history have been responsible for the worse wars and hostilities.

Gentle – God does not bully people and force them to do this or do that.

He honors free will and allows people to accept His will. He deals very tenderly with His children, not in compromising the truth, but in the manner He handles us. He is direct without being caustic, firm without oppressing or forcing, certain without being overbearing. On the other hand, when man thinks he knows what is right, he could care less about what others think or feel. Those who think they know tend to be controlling, pushy, intimidating, and bigheaded. Many cock-sure people feel driven to force their wisdom on the rest of us wi th a bu ll dog determination that runs all (Continued on page 5)

(Continued from page 4)

over everyone who gets in the way.

Reasonable – People often complain about God’s ways not being sensible and pragmatic in the “real world.” Man in his prideful way thinks he knows better than God, than everyone else for that matter. “Love your neighbor as yourself.”

“Turn the other cheek.”

“Do not take a neighbor to court.” “Let him take my coat too.” These are seen as fanciful ideas but not practical or reasonable. For those of us who follow His ways, we marvel in joyful delight just how reasonably His wisdom really works.

projected cost of the new plan will be about 900 million dollars. We have 308 million people in our country, so the improved health care system will cost roughly three million dollars for each person in the country. Why not give everyone three million dollars instead? Man’s wisdom is not exactly reasonable!

Full of Good Fruits – The fruit that comes from God is always good with no strings attached. “Every good thing given and every perfect gift is from above, coming down from the Father of lights, with whom there is no variation or shifting shadow.” The fruit that man produces cannot compare.

“God’s wisdom is centered in God with the concern for those it affects. God holds no selfish concern.

He has constant compassion for us.”

One of the numerous things contained within the Torah (the first five books of the Bible) is God’s wisdom for a theocratic monarchy, which is a kingdom run effectively with God as the sovereign. The recent controversial health care bill consists of 1990 pages, which is approximately five times larger than the Torah! One bill produced by many “wise” men is five times larger than God’s wisdom for the entire organization of a nation.

When enacted, the

Full of Mercy – Mercy or compassion is empathy centered on others not self. God’s wisdom is centered in God with the concern for those it affects.

God holds no selfish concern. He has constant compassion for us. Human wisdom primarily is centered on self with little concern about the others involved.

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Unwavering – God is our rock, our sure place, which never changes.

He is always stable, consistent, and unchanging as is His wisdom. It is never ambiguous nor dubious, rather certain and reliable. Man and his wisdom are like the wind − ever changing and unstable.

Without Hypocrisy – Hypocrisy is a pretense of having a v i rt u o us character or moral character. God is always genuinely free from all pretenses. The wisdom of God is what it seems to be without fluctuation. This is in contrast to man who often is given to hypocrisy with seemingly altruistic motives which are really selfish motives.

Congo Connection

By Richard and Cheryl Elton

I

n recent months, all

three ministries in the Congo countries that partner with Living Hope International Ministries have been busy with teaching, fellowship, and outreach activities.

Please enjoy the photos and this brief recap of some of these events, and continue to keep our African brothers and sisters in your prayers. They really appreciate it.

Bringing the gospel to inmates

In January, Rev. Kennedy Kutukwa Nsilulu of The Way Restored held a weekend seminar focusing on bringing the gospel message to those in prison. There is a lot of interest in the church for prison outreach, and about 50 people participated in these teachings.

Kennedy is working with the authorities in Kinshasa to gain access to several prisons, one

of which is located very close to his headquarters. Please pray for open doors – literally – as permission has not yet been officially granted.

Five day event in Kinshasa Kennedy and Kael’s churches joined together in February for a five day seminar called “One God, Yahweh, Strength of a Nation.” It was very well attended, and both men reported that this event was a huge success and a glory to God. Living Hope International Ministries of the Congo Rev. Armel Ngo in Brazzaville reports that God is working mightily to resolve the issues they had with the property the church uses for meetings.

Thanks to many prayers, they have been able rightfully to claim the property and are now beginning construction of a building they plan to use for worship services.

Recently, Armel traveled to the coastal city of Pointe-Noire, where a sizeable fellowship is located. He conducted a multiday seminar called “God is at Work Within You.” Children honored with special events During the Christmas holiday, Kael’s fellowship held special events specifically for the children. Zoe Church met in the Masina municipality of Kinshasa, where the kids enjoyed a time of poetry, praise, arts and crafts, and Bible. Some of the children were allowed to give teachings to the other children, a time which Kael called “hot Bible.”

Likewise, the children in Kennedy’s church met on Christmas for a day-long event which included many activities to bless the kids.

Believers in Kinshasa packed in the 5 day seminar held

by Zoe Church and the Way Restored

Zoe Church - Children teaching each other the Scriptures 6

STOP THINKING ABOUT YOURSELF!

By Vince Finnegan

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ames 4:1 – “What is the source of quarrels and conflicts among you? Is not the source your pleasures that wage war in your members?”

The question posed − What is the source or cause of the fighting and quarreling among us? The answer is that they come from within the person. The source is your own pleasures. Just as a child acts out when he or she does not get his way, so do those void of godly wisdom. People are selfcentered, so when they do not get their way, they get upset and act out (which is why there are conflicts and quarrels). We believe the deception that our contentious behavior is the reaction to the wrong behavior of another. However, the truth of the matter is we did not get our way, so we became upset. With maturity, we learn to justify and disguise these unseemly behav-

iors, but they are the same as they were when we were children.

James 4:2 – “You lust and do not have; so you commit murder. You are envious and cannot obtain; so you fight and quarrel. You do not have because you do not ask.”

Humanity’s sole motivation for thoughts and activities is selfishness. The great paradigm (a philosophical and theoretical framework) switch for the Christian is in our base of operation for life. We now have the choice to think what we think and do what we do for the glory of God and not self only. We are enabled to

“People are motivated by their own selfish lust.” seek, focus, and obey the will of God above our own will.

We can be like Christ who always did the will of the Father.

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People are motivated by their own selfish lust. We learn early on in life if we do the right thing, we benefit. We eat all our food in order to get the treat. We learned to go on the potty because we received applause or rewards. At school, we get certificates of achievements, rewards, and grades for our actions. With our vocation, we are told if we do well, we will receive better pay, vacation time, and, most of all, positions with more prestige.

When our egos are stroked, we respond and do more to satisfy our employer. The inner machinery of all civilization is the manipulation of man’s activity based upon his selfinterest. Yet, this core motive was nonexistent in the original world, during the life of our Lord Jesus, and will be so in the Kingdom to come. The holy and right way is living from a God-centered core.

Satan keeps control over the people of the world by the complete and constant manipulation of our egos. He knows that individual selfinterest is the actual motive of all conscious action. The interest we have in others is only through the reflection of self. For the believer, God implants a new will in us, the will of God in Christ Jesus. The great paradigm switch is we now have a choice between our own will and the will of Christ that lives within us. The new will causes us to have genuine

STOP THINKING ABOUT YOURSELF Continued. . .

(Continued from page 7)

godlike concern for our fellow man.

wrong motive is self-centered concern, desire for that which brings pleasure to self, which is the way of every human in the world. The way humanity got into the mess we are in was by Adam and Eve following self-interests and pleasures in place of God’s interests. God’s interest for them was paradise.

Jesus taught us to stop following man’s interest, deny self, and follow him (Luke 9:23-27; Matthew 16:21-27).

within ourselves and telling God we love Him and asking Him to help us grasp the concept under consideration.

The history of humanity reYou can keep engaged with veals the vast extremes of the outer world, and at the wickedness stirred by the unsame time, you surrender relenting and hideous motive yourself to the inner world of self. Even in the church, where God dwells within we experience the effects of Christ in you. Turn your the immature Christians who thought in silent worship to never grow past self-interest Him as you are involved in to desire of and obedience to every activity of life. Ask for the will of God. Everyone His help; ask for His blesscomes around because of selfings on the person with interest; few stay around our attention whom you are talking. because most do not ma- “Turning ture past self to God. from self and the world to Pray that His blessing will shower down on the place Some churches grow in population because the Him with prayer, inward that you are located. Ask person in charge is a worship, and surrender is Him to guide you and direct you. Keep it up master motivator playing throughout the day. First on the base motive of thing in the morning, last self-interest to entice thing at night, while you people to participate. are eating or driving in The people think they your car, turn your are giving service to God thoughts and heart to him. but really are serving When you forget to do it, themselves. immediately return to focus on Him. Do not dwell James 4:3- “You ask on the past, on what you and do not receive, befailed to do; rather, do it now. cause you ask with We can turn our lives over to wrong motives, so that the one who lives within us When you realize you are self you may spend it on your by quiet, persistent practice -focused, claim Jesus’ compleasures.” day by day. Turning our atmand to die to yourself. tention from self and the STOP THINKING ABOUT Asking God out of selfworld to Him with prayer, YOURSELF! Turn your mind interest rather than Godinward worship, and surrento Him, and ask what His will interest is to ask amiss. The der is our goal. We can deis. What does He want you to concern for prayer is to ask velop and establish mental think about, and what does He for God’s will and wisdom habits of inward orientation. want you to do?

rather than our own. Read A steady, inner, secret turning these prayers - Ephesians 1:16 to God is possible. We can -19; Colossians 1:9-12. The begin right now by turning 8

Psalm 117: Praise Yahweh, All Nations!

By: Sean Finnegan

P

salms 117:1-2 1 Praise the LORD, all nations!

Extol him, all peoples!

2 For great is his steadfast love toward us, And the faithfulness of the LORD endures forever.

Praise the LORD!

Psalm 117 is set among a collection of praise psalms known as the Egyptian Hallel (Psalms 113-118). “Hallel” is simply the Hebrew word for praise, and the “Egyptian Hallel” was the set of praise psalms typically sung during the Passover meal celebration every year (according to the Babylonian Talmud). In fact, Jesus and the disciples may well have sung them as part of their Passover celebration (Mark 14:26). Even so, rather than focusing on how Psalm 117 was and still is used for worship purposes, I would like to focus attention on its content and how it was later interpreted in the New Testament.

Praise psalms like Psalm 117 have a definite structure consisting of at least two parts. The first is a call to praise, and the second either gives reasons for praise

or else tells what to say.

Psalm 117 begins with a charge, “Praise Yahweh, all nations!” The inner meaning of the word “Hallelujah” is “praise Yahweh” (hallel = praise, jah = shortened form of Yahweh). This is why translations differ on how to put the first line, with most of them rendering it as, “Praise the LORD, all nations;” while others simply write, “Hallelujah” or “Alleluia.” Even so, saying “Praise the LORD” or “Hallelujah” is not actually praising God; rather, it is telling others to praise Him. In this psalm, the call to praise is very interesting because it invites not just Israel or the righteous, but all nations to praise Him. It is important to remember that at this time Israel was God’s only chosen people. In fact, the other nations were populated with Gentiles (non -Israelites) who often fought against Israel. In his commentary on the Psalms, John Goldingay writes: “Usually the people of God are urged to praise Yhwh, and only here are the nations envisaged as ‘glorifying’ Yhwh.

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While other psalms have commissioned the proclaiming of Yhwh’s glory among the nations and have urged the whole world to sing for, shout for, and serve Yhwh, only here are the nations themselves urged to do so.” (Vol. 3, p. 350) Just imagine the worship leader standing up and declaring “Praise Yahweh, all nations” from the midst of the congregation gathered in the courts of the Temple in Jerusalem. That might be a bit strange. Still, what is even more extraordinary is the reason why the Gentiles should praise God. We might expect the psalmist to write “because God is the creator of all” or “because God is the provider and sustainer” or some other universal blessing that the sovereign Lord bestows on all, but instead the reason given is His great steadfast love and faithfulness to Israel. Why would all the nations, who were, more often than not, enemies of God’s chosen people, praise God on account of His covenant love (Continued on page 10)

Psalm 117: Praise Yahweh, All Nations! Continued. . . and faithfulness to Israel?

In order to answer this question, we must tap into the root of the Abrahamic blessing. God had promised Abraham:

and it is only fitting that Yahweh would begin this process by calling out one faithful couple (Abraham and Sarah) and blessing them along with their descendants. But, what exactly did God have in mind? What shape would these blessings take?

Many years later, God painted a portrait of the bright future in a vision written down by the great prophet Isaiah:

flow to it, 3 and many peoples shall come, and say: "Come, let us go up to the mountain of the LORD, to the house of the God of Jacob,

Genesis 12:2-3 2 And I will make of you that he may teach us his a great nation, ways and I will bless you and that we may walk in and make your name his paths." great, For out of Zion shall go so that you will be a the law, blessing. and the word 3 I will bless of the LORD those who bless from Jerusayou, lem. and him who dishonors you I 4 He shall will curse, judge between ...the mountain of the house of the LORD and in you all the nations, the families of and shall deshall be established as the highest of the mountains, the earth shall cide disputes and shall be lifted up above the hills; be blessed." for many peoThe idea is simple, though it has massive consequences. God chose one family to work with, so that through them He could bring blessings upon all. The Abrahamic people were the ones through whom God would fix what was wrong with the world.

The original curses that befell Adam and Eve and their offspring would need to be rectified,

Isaiah 2:2 Isaiah 2:2-4 2 It shall come to pass in the latter days that the mountain of the house of the LORD shall be established as the highest of the mountains, and shall be lifted up above the hills; and all the nations shall 10

ples; and they shall beat their swords into plowshares, and their spears into pruning hooks; nation shall not lift up sword against nation, neither shall they learn war anymore.

The central idea of this (Continued on page 11)

spectacular vision of the future is that God will work through Abraham’s descendants, the nation of Israel, to instruct and establish justice among the nations. The peoples of the world will one day eagerly travel to Zion, the heart of Israel, to learn how to live. This teaching will be so effective at settling disputes that nations will no longer fight each other or even train for war.

Such a vision throbs in the heart of our psalmist so intensely that he or she has, as it were, already written the song to accompany this grand moment when God fulfills the promises to Abraham and all the nations find Israel the supreme agent of God’s blessing. For then, on that day, Israel will boldly sing:

tioch:

“In Christ, something amazing had happened: people from the nations were suddenly attracted to the true God and the way of life He prescribed.”

2 For great is his steadfast love toward us, And the faithfulness of the LORD endures forever.

Praise the LORD!

Acts 11:19-26 19 Now those who were scattered because of the persecution that arose over Stephen traveled as far as Phoenicia and Cyprus and Antioch, speaking the word to no one except Jews. 20 But there were some of them, men of Cyprus and Cyrene, who on coming to Antioch spoke to the Hel le nis t s [Greeks] also, preaching the Lord Jesus. 21 And the hand of the Lord was with them, and a great number who believed turned to the Lord. … 25 So Barnabas went to Tarsus to look for Saul [a.k.a Paul], 26 and when he had found him, he brought him to Antioch. For a whole year they met with the church and taught a great many people. And in Antioch the disciples were first called Christians.

Centuries after Psalm 117 was penned, the exPharisee Paul came to see the beginning of this process when he arrived in An-

Though there had been isolated incidents of Gentiles joining the messianic movement (i.e. Christianity)—like the treasurer of

Psalms 117:1-2 1 Praise the LORD, all nations!

Extol him, all peoples!

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Ethiopia and the centurion Cornelius—Barnabas and Paul found themselves at the center of a mixed community where Jews and Greeks were worshipping together. In Christ, something amazing had happened: people from the nations were suddenly attracted to the true God and the way of life He prescribed. The Apostle Paul later wrote: Romans 15:8-12 8 For I tell you that Christ became a servant to the circumcised to show God's truthfulness, in order to confirm the promises given to the patriarchs, 9 and in order that the Gentiles might glorify God for his mercy. As it is written, "Therefore I will praise you among the Gentiles, and sing to your name." [Psalms 18:49] 10 And again it is said, "Rejoice, O Gentiles,

Unwavering Steadfastness and Loyalty to Yahweh

T

By Mary Ann Yaconis

he book of Ruth is set in the era of the book of Judges (1380 BC to 1050 BC) that was marked by rebellion against God which resulted in severe oppression and famine. One of the central themes of the book of Judges revolves around Israel rejecting Yahweh from being ruler over Israel to having a monarchy as did other nations.

(Continued from page 11)

Psalm 117: Praise Yahweh, All Nations! Continued. . .

with his people."

[Deuteronomy 32:43] 11 And again, "Praise the Lord, all you Gentiles, and let all the peoples extol him." [Psalms 117:1] 12 And again Isaiah says, "The root of Jesse will come, even he who arises to rule the Gentiles; in him will the Gentiles hope." [Isaiah 11:10] Christ serves the Jews in order to confirm the promises given to Abraham,

Within this tumultuous time, there was a Moabite woman named Ruth, who forsook her home, culture, and country and remained faithful to her husband’s family and Yahweh.

Naomi and Elimelech, whose name means God is King, had traveled to Moab in order to survive from famine conditions around Bethlehem. In Isaac, and Jacob.

Of course, one of those promises was “in your offspring shall all the nations of the earth be blessed” (Genesis 22:17).

In Christ this promise has been confirmed and will find total fulfillment when he returns to accomplish what was prophesied. Still, even before the Son of Man comes back and establishes God’s eternal Kingdom, the Gentiles are already being grafted into the tree of faith (Romans 11:17-24).

To make his point, Paul quotes from Psalms 117:1, among other Scriptures, showing that the inclusion of the Gentiles was foreordained by God long ago.

Because God has demonstrated steadfast love to 12

Moab, Ruth married one of their sons. Both sons died as well as Elimelech, and Naomi now was a widow along with Ruth and another daughter-inlaw. Naomi recommended both women stay in their home country. One remained.

The following record is given of this time when Naomi was departing to go back to the Bethlehem area alone.

(Continued on page 13)

Israel and faithfulness to His promises, which He has now achieved through one representative Israelite—Jesus of Nazareth—all the Gentiles should glorify God. They now have reason to sing the psalms along with natural Israel, and as the Jews hear the Gentiles praising God, they find themselves singing: Psalms 117:1-2 1 Praise the LORD, all nations!

Extol him, all peoples!

2 For great is his steadfast love toward us, And the faithfulness of the LORD endures forever.

Praise the LORD!

(Continued from page 12)

Ruth 1:14-18 And they lifted up their voices and wept again; and Orpah kissed her motherin-law, but Ruth clung to her. Then she said, “Behold, your sister-in-law has gone back to her people and her gods; return after your sister-in -law.” But Ruth said, “Do not urge me to leave you or turn back from following you; for where you go, I will go, and where you lodge, I will lodge. Your people shall be my people, and your God, my God. “Where you die, I will die, and there I will be buried. Thus may the LORD do to me, and worse, if anything but death parts you and me.” When she saw that she was determined to go with her, she said no more to her.

Naomi gave Ruth a blessing and told her she could stay

(Ruth 1:8, 9), but Ruth determined to go with Naomi and follow Yahweh. What was Ruth leaving behind?

Ruth was leaving her “people.” The Moabites, descendents of Lot, were the result of incest involving Lot and his two daughters (Genesis 19). The chief god of Moab was Chemosh (Numbers 21:29; 1 Kings 11:33), and Ammon's chief god was Molech (1 Kings11:5,7). Worship of idols and sacrifice of children dominated their culture. A problem for the Israelites for many years, Numbers 25:1 and 31:14-16 records the events that the Moabite 13

women were so beautiful they would entice the Israelites to marry them and then bring into Israel their idolatry.

In great contrast to the debauchery of Moab, Ruth forsook her culture and made an unwavering, committed choice to remain loyal to Naomi and Yahweh. After returning to Bethlehem, a kinsmanredeemer named Boaz married Ruth and saved both widows from a very difficult life of poverty. Ruth was blessed by Yahweh with marriage and children, which resulted in her greatgrandson who was King David. Ruth was a courageous woman who acted in faith, committed to living according to Yahweh’s laws, and was incredibly redeemed from destruction.

We are faced with the same problem as Ruth every day.

Are we going to stay in the muck and mire of the lusts of the flesh or are we going to live for entrance into the Kingdom of God when Christ returns for his people? In reading the four compact (Continued on page 15)

STUDY THE SCRIPTURES

By Vince Finnegan 2 Timothy 2:15AV – Study to show thyself approved unto God, a workman that needeth not to be ashamed, rightly dividing the word of truth.

James 1:21 Therefore putting aside all filthiness and all that remains of wickedness, in humility [meekness] receive the word implanted, which is able to save your souls.

Our acceptance of the importance of study and our attitude toward study hold a determining impact on how we approach the subject. God wants us is to enjoy this important aspect of our Christian life and has enabled us to be successful in our diligent effort. The following are some ideas to help you along.

1) Believe you have the ability to study the Bible with comprehension because God has equipped you with the holy spirit. 1 Corinthians 2:12 - Now we have received, not the spirit of the world, but the Spirit who is from God, so that we may

know the things freely given to us by God 2) Devotional reading of the Scriptures should be a daily habitual practice just like eating. Read the entire Bible from beginning to end at least once a year.

3) Plan routine study time, and select a place where you will not be disturbed (which may need to be outside of your home.)

4) Select the topic for study. Always focus on the context of the subject. For example, if you are trying to understand James 1:21, read the entire chapter and the whole epistle. You may need to do this repeatedly to discover the overall truth God is communicating. Understand the verse in the context.

5) Pray and ask God to help you know the truth and what He wants you to understand.

6) Read other sections of Scripture that communicate the same subject.

7) Look up the words that are unclear to you in a good English dictionary.

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8) Take time to ponder what you are studying.

2 Timothy 2:7 – “Consider what I say; and the Lord give you understanding in all things.”

9) Use other material written about the subject as a reference outside of you to consider. All the books published with our ministry are designed to help the readers understand the Bible and can be an aid to your study.

10) Slow your mind down, and ask questions that provoke inquiry. Who is speaking?

What is said? When is it said? (This is important to acknowledge when comparing to other parts of the Bible that may cover the same subject.) What is the geographical location? (Use a Bible atlas.) Is the language figurative or literal? Why is this being stated at this location?

11) Enjoy the task of studying without becoming anxious or impatient. The exercise of studying is very rewarding and ongoing, so do not feel compelled to

force understanding.

These sentences (with all the BLOOPERS) actually appeared in church bulletins or were announced in church services: ld wou n o The s ati ay. ermo greg t Sund W n n o a l x k C s e e on th this morni n h t t t s o f e n ng a o f ight: Wate 'Searc r.' Th : 'Jesus dies e break a l e serm hing f e or Jes if th pancak on t i u e e s.' h at t i c r e o sf ppr ld a c girdle u o w ri Remember in prayer the many who are stor ir elect a p e sick of our community. Smile at someone The him th d n who is hard to love. Say 'Hell' to somele Ladies Bible Study will be one who doesn't care much about you.

The held Thursday morning at 10 Fasti ng & AM. All ladies are invited to Pray er C o lunch in the Fellowship Hall nfere nce after the B. S. Is done. inclu des snac ks an Ladies, don't forget the rummage sale. It's a chance to get rid of those things not d me als. worth keeping around the house. Bring your husbands.

Miss Charlene Mason sang 'I will not pass this way again, ' giving obvious aig amp c pleasure to the congregation. ew 's n

y: nda u S ast an l g o l ns

For those of you who have children and don't know it, rch chu e h we have a nursery downstairs. ed t veil rs.' n u ou ter inis o up y M e ge s ciat sso y Pled Potluck supper Sunday at 5:00 PM - prayer and medication to follow.

A The ped M p 'I U (Continued from page 13)

Unwavering Steadfastness and Loyalty To Yahweh Continued...

chapters of Ruth, we can gloss over the incredible darkness of her life in Moab and the juxtaposition of her life with Boaz, her kinsman-redeemer. Ruth epitomizes leaving the old nature behind and living in the new nature of Christ. Ruth was firm in her steadfastness and unwavering loyalty for Yah-

weh. Every moment, we have the same choice as Ruth. Do we stay in the lusts of the flesh, or do we live for Yahweh?

Ruth had no idea what her life would be like with Naomi in a foreign land, but she had the hope of loving Yahweh. Are we, as Ruth was, to allow nothing to come in between ourselves and Yahweh, willing to live and die for what we hold as truth? We can be encouraged by her steadfastness and remain 15

faithful each moment of each day to leave our Moab and live in Yahweh’s presence.

2 Peter 3:17 You therefore, beloved, knowing this beforehand, be on your guard so that you are not carried away by the error of unprincipled men and fall from your own steadfastness.

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How precious also are Your thoughts to me, O God! How vast is the sum of them!

If I should count them, they would outnumber the sand When I awake, I am still with You ~Psalms 139:17&18~