We can accomplish more by time and strength put into prayer (and bible study) than we can by putting the same amount of time and strength into anything else.

–R.A. Torrey

Make up your mind that you will put some time every day into the study of the Word of God. That is an easy resolution to make, and not a very difficult one to keep; if the one who makes it is in earnest. It is one of the most fruitful resolutions that any Christian ever made. The forming of that resolution and the holding faithfully to it, has been the turning point in many a life. Many a life that has been barren and unsatisfactory has become rich and useful through the introduction into it of regular, persevering, daily study of the Bible. This study may not be very interesting at first, the results may not be very encouraging; but, if one will keep pegging away, it will soon begin to count as nothing else has ever counted in the development of character, and in the enrichment of the whole life. Nothing short of absolute physical inability should be allowed to interfere with this daily study.

–R. A. Torrey, introduction to the New Topical Textbook.

Deuteronomy 6:4-9 NRSV Hear, O Israel: The Lord is our God, the Lord alone. 5 You shall love the Lord your God with all your heart, and with all your soul, and with all your might. 6 Keep these words that I am commanding you today in your heart. 7 Recite them to your children and talk about them when you are at home and when you are away, when you lie down and when you rise. 8 Bind them as a sign on your hand, fix them as an emblem on your forehead, 9 and write them on the doorposts of your house and on your gates.
(The Shema)

Matthew 22:37 NRSV He said to him, “You shall love the Lord your God with all your heart, and with all your soul, and with all your mind.”

This is an update to an earlier post.

New Testament Exegesis Bibliography – 2009

Annotated Old Testament Bibliography – 2009

Parable Man Commentary Reviews (follow the links)

Westminster Bookstore – Commentaries

Favorite NT Commentaries – Biblical Foundations

Commentary Set – LeStourgeon Online

What commentaries does DG recommend? – desiringGod

My Commentary Recommendations – wordandspirit

Building a biblical commentary library: commentary recommendations – New Epistles

NT Commentary Recommendations – CROSS-eyed

BestCommentaries.com

Top Commentaries on Every Book of the Bible – Ligonier Ministries

Blomberg’s Updated [NT] Commentary List – Dr Jim West

How to Begin a Commentary Collection – Challies.com

Five Rules for Choosing a Commentary – The Road To Emmaus
HT: Challies.com

If you would like free commentaries on the whole Bible and haven’t gotten a hold of them, I would recommend Matthew Henry, John Gill and John Calvin. One way of doing this is to download e-Sword and install Matthew Henry’s Commentary on the Whole Bible and John Gill’s Exposition of the Entire Bible from the Commentaries download page. I can’t remember how I got Calvin’s commentary into e-Sword but it can be found online here.

Also see previous posts:
Bible Commentaries
Spurgeon In Defense of Commentaries

Photo © Scripture Zealot

Updated: 7/24/09

I write this post with fear and trembling. This verse is a favorite for a lot of people and I have had it memorized for many years.

Jeremiah 29:11 NIV For I know the plans I have for you,” declares the LORD , “plans to prosper you and not to harm you, plans to give you hope and a future.

But looking at it in the context of the whole paragraph puts it in a new light.

Jeremiah 29:10-14 NIV This is what the LORD says: “When seventy years are completed for Babylon, I will come to you and fulfill my gracious promise to bring you back to this place. 11 For I know the plans I have for you,” declares the LORD , “plans to prosper you and not to harm you, plans to give you hope and a future. 12 Then you will call upon me and come and pray to me, and I will listen to you. 13 You will seek me and find me when you seek me with all your heart. 14 I will be found by you,” declares the LORD , “and will bring you back from captivity. I will gather you from all the nations and places where I have banished you,” declares the LORD , “and will bring you back to the place from which I carried you into exile.”

God is speaking here to Jeremiah regarding Israel. I don’t know if this necessarily means the premise is invalid but I think there is other Scripture that may be more appropriate like Habakkuk 3:17-19, Matthew 6:33-34, Romans 8:28, Romans 15:13 etc. We need to “be prepared to endure everything with patience while joyfully giving thanks to the Father who has enabled you to share in the inheritance of the saints in the light” which may be subject matter for a future post. (Colossians 1:11-12)

During my hesitation to post this I came across this review of The Purpose Driven Life which gives further perspective. I try to stay away from direct criticism of others on this blog because I want to stick to Scripture and because there are a ton of other blogs for that stuff. But I think this quote is beneficial.

‘First we will examine promises Warren says apply to all Christians. One clear example of this is Jeremiah 29:11 which he uses multiple times in the book. On page 31 we read “Wonderful changes are going to happen in your life as you begin to live it on purpose. God says “I know what I am planning for you…’I have good plans for you, not plans to hurt you. I will give you hope and a good future’.” When read in context we see that this verse is not written to apply to all Christians. It is a promise given specifically to the Israelite exiles. By Warren’s logic Jeremiah 44:27 should also apply to all Christians. It reads, “I am watching over them for harm and not for good, and all the men of Judah who are in the land of Egypt will meet their end by the word and by famine until they are completely gone.” A pastor once told me “that verse wouldn’t sell as many plaques at the Christian book stores.”’

http://www.discerningreader.com/review/the-purpose-driven-life/

Also see:
What Jeremiah 29:11 Is Not About

ElShaddai Edwards at He is Sufficient blog has written a post asking people to post their six word stories based on ideas related to the Bible and/or Christianity. I’m in a blogging slump this week. I came up with quite a few of these six word stories and thought I would post them here and come up with Scripture to go along with them for lack of anything better to post at the moment.

If you would like to post any please go to his blog to post them.

I’m thinking Christian haiku might also be an interesting idea. Maybe for a future post.

Here are the six word stories that came to my head.

I am child of I Am. (John 1:12, Exodus 3:14)

More I learn, less I know. (?)

I am humble. No you’re not! (Luke 18:11, Romans 12:3)

Poor in spirit, blessed by God. (Matthew 5:3)

Body wasting away-spirit being renewed. (2 Corinthians 4:16)

Seek Him diligently. Will find Him. (Proverbs 8:17)

I did nothing. God chose me. (John 6:65, Romans 8:29, ?)

Seek Him first. Value the pearl. (Matthew 6:33, Matthew 13:45-46)

World is bad. God is good. (John 15:19, John 16:11, Nahum 1:7)

An addendum to yesterday’s post.

Here is an article dealing with the same topic:
Applying the Old Testament Law Today
HT: Expository Thoughts

Both today’s Pulpit Magazine article and the article noted above mention that, “The distinctions between the moral, civil, and ceremonial laws are arbitrary, imposed on the text from outside the text.”

I always divided the Law into these three categories so this is new and interesting for me.

I don’t have time or content for a post today so I will suggest a series that will be starting at Pulpit Magazine that I’m very eager to read over the next two weeks:
You, Me, and Moses
The NT Christian’s Relationship to the OT Law

The cross has become a piece of jewelry, a beautiful decoration in a church, a symbol of faith. It is difficult for us to pass back through the centuries of tradition to see crucifixion as a form of capital punishment so horrible that polite people would not so much as mention it… If the idea of crucifixion was abhorrent to decent people in the ancient world, imagine the difficulty of trying to convince them that a god—indeed, the God—had willingly endured such a punishment.

– Thomas Schmidt (from A Scandalous Beauty)

1 Corinthians 1:18 For the message about the cross is foolishness to those who are perishing, but to us who are being saved it is the power of God.

The most searched for terms that land on this blog are related to free will. Since this original post I added some additional resources in the comments.

Free Will

Psalms 55:16-17
16 But I call to God, and the LORD will save me.
17 Evening and morning and at noon I utter my complaint and moan, and he hears my voice.

Daniel 6:10
When Daniel knew that the document had been signed, he went to his house where he had windows in his upper chamber open toward Jerusalem. He got down on his knees three times a day and prayed and gave thanks before his God, as he had done previously.

Acts 10:9
The next day, as they were on their journey and approaching the city, Peter went up on the housetop about the sixth hour to pray.

Matthew Henry says:

David perseveres in his resolution to call upon God, being well assured that he should not seek him in vain (Psalm 55:16)… He resolves to be both fervent and frequent [see below] in this duty…

He will pray frequently, every day, and three times a day – evening, and morning, and at noon. It is probable that this had been his constant practice, and he resolves to continue it now that he is in his distress. Then we may come the more boldly to the throne of grace in trouble when we do not then first begin to seek acquaintance with God, but it is what we have constantly practised, and the trouble finds the wheels of prayer going. Those that think three meals a day little enough for the body ought much more to think three solemn prayers a day little enough for the soul, and to count it a pleasure, not a task. As it is fit that in the morning we should begin the day with God, and in the evening close it with him, so it is fit that in the midst of the day we should retire awhile to converse with him. It was Daniel’s practice to pray three times a day (Daniel 6:10), and noon was one of Peter’s hours of prayer, Acts 10:9. Let not us be weary of praying often, for God is not weary of hearing. “He shall hear my voice, and not blame me for coming too often, but the oftener the better, the more welcome.”

If you would like some models of morning and evening prayers you can find some here:
http://www.eternallifeministries.org/prayers.htm

Proverbs 8:17 NRSV I love those who love me, and those who seek me diligently find me.

Lamentations 3:25 NIV The Lord is good to those whose hope is in him, to the one who seeks him;

John 14:21 NRSV “They who have my commandments and keep them are those who love me; and those who love me will be loved by my Father, and I will love them and reveal myself to them.”

Additional reading:
Seeking Richly Rewarded by Charles Spurgeon at The Spurgeon Archive

Unfortunately, we’ve lost the true meaning of the word awesome, at least in the USA. (How about you in other countries?)

Awesome
Dictionary.com
1. inspiring awe: an awesome sight.
2. showing or characterized by awe.
3. Slang. very impressive: That new white convertible is totally awesome.

American Heritage Dictionary
1. Inspiring awe: an awesome thunderstorm.
2. Expressing awe: stood in awesome silence before the ancient ruins.
3. Slang Remarkable; outstanding: “a totally awesome arcade game” (Los Angeles Times).

I think these slang terms are even outdated. Anything anyone likes or thinks is cool can be labeled as awesome.

Awe
Dictionary.com
1. an overwhelming feeling of reverence, admiration, fear, etc., produced by that which is grand, sublime, extremely powerful, or the like: in awe of God; in awe of great political figures.

American Heritage Dictionary
1. A mixed emotion of reverence, respect, dread, and wonder inspired by authority, genius, great beauty, sublimity, or might: We felt awe when contemplating the works of Bach. The observers were in awe of the destructive power of the new weapon.

WordNet
1. an overwhelming feeling of wonder or admiration; “he stared over the edge with a feeling of awe”
2. a feeling of profound respect for someone or something; “the fear of God”

Exodus 15:11 “Who is like you, O LORD, among the gods? Who is like you, majestic in holiness, awesome in glorious deeds, doing wonders?

Psalms 66:3 Say to God, “How awesome are your deeds! So great is your power that your enemies come cringing to you.

Isaiah 64:3 When you did awesome things that we did not look for, you came down, the mountains quaked at your presence.

Joel 2:31 The sun shall be turned to darkness, and the moon to blood, before the great and awesome day of the LORD comes.

We younger people sing in church “Our God is an Awesome God” or other songs and hymns mentioning the word, I wonder if they’re thinking that God is really cool or a great guy.

I have to wonder if Bible translators will feel a need to find another word for awesome to describe God.

Somewhat related to that, I think the church in general has lost the “fear of God” or awe of God in the classic sense. Mabye a future post on that.

There has been a lot of buzz in the biblioblogosphere about the book Commentary on the New Testament use of the Old Testament, D. A. Carson & G. K. Beale.

Some blog examples:

• In Light of the Gospel – Best Christian Books of 2007
• Biblical Foundations – Best of 2007
• The Road To Emmaus – Top Ten Books of 2007
• The Riddleblog – Five of the Best Books of 2007 (#2)
• The Henry Institute – Ten Good Books from a Good Old Year (#3)

etc.

Here is an interview in Christianity Today with the editors of the book:
Two Testaments, One Story
Top evangelical scholars team up for landmark commentary on New Testament use of Old Testament.

If the false gods that people worship aren’t real, why are they even mentioned?

Psalms 96:4
For great is the LORD, and greatly to be praised; he is to be feared above all gods.

Of course the inspired writers of the Bible knew the gods aren’t real.

Psalms 96:5
For all the gods of the peoples are worthless idols, but the LORD made the heavens.

The false idols have done nothing and can do nothing because they aren’t real.

I believe a comparison could be thus: As a hypothetical situation let’s say someone named Esteban has an imaginary friend and his “friend” tells him to expect others to recognize random quotes. We know his friend isn’t real but we still mention this friend because he’s real to Esteban. (This is just hypothetical of course.) Then we can make comparisons between imaginary friends that aren’t real and God who is reality itself.

This is just a trite example I thought of while reading Psalm 96. I read Psalm 96 because it was February 6th and I’ve been reading a Psalm a day since November. This keeps me on track. When I get to Psalm 119 there will be chaos.

One caveat is unlike our hypothetical example of Esteban who fears God infinitely more than his imaginary friend, Paul (the unhypothetical one in the Bible) mentions that worshiping false gods can be participating in the demonic (1 Corinthians 10:20) and was touched on here in the third paragraph.

There are so many web sites devoted to tips for almost anything you can think of–tips for using computers, getting stains out etc. Here is a blog post with tips for spending time with God. I know that sounds trite but I believe this is a very important message for the majority of of the people in the Church.

“I was basically getting spiritual crumbs from books, podcasts and my pastor. I was living vicariously through others’ relationships with God… While it’s good to learn from others, Jesus calls us to follow Him (not follow others who are following Him).”

Use S.O.A.P. – Simple tips for spending time with God.

Colossians 1:15-20 NASB
He is the image of the invisible God, the firstborn of all creation. For by Him all things were created, both in the heavens and on earth, visible and invisible, whether thrones or dominions or rulers or authorities–all things have been created through Him and for Him. He is before all things, and in Him all things hold together. He is also head of the body, the church; and He is the beginning, the firstborn from the dead, so that He Himself will come to have first place in everything. For it was the Father’s good pleasure for all the fullness to dwell in Him, and through Him to reconcile all things to Himself, having made peace through the blood of His cross; through Him, I say, whether things on earth or things in heaven.

(I chose NASB for the capitalized pronouns and if you click on the Scripture reference link you’ll find a whole lot of cross references.)

Some people say that the Bible is our owner’s manual. I think it’s much more than that and thinking of it in that way devalues what the Bible is. However I think of commentaries as owners’ manuals for the Bible. Not that they are a necessity. After all, many Christians in the past and in some cultures now don’t even have a Bible in written form. And the Holy Spirit teaches us as we read God’s Word.

But commentaries can give us insight that we normally wouldn’t find and informs us of ancillary information pertaining to history, culture, society, politics, literary style etc. which help us to better understand why something was written the way it was. They can also teach us how to read and interpret the Bible by following their model of using Scripture to interpret Scripture, looking at context etc.

Here is a two part blog post I came across that I want to pass along.

Using commentaries in Bible study
Tips on using commentaries to study the Bible

HT: Using Commentaries in Bible Study

There are a couple of past entries on this blog related to commentaries:
Spurgeon In Defense of Commentaries
Bible commentary reviews

In November I started reading one Psalm a day.

In many of our evangelical circles, people put on a happy face and sing happy worship songs. There isn’t always a lot of “realness” or honest expression of doubt, fear, frustration etc. So I wanted to turn to the Psalms as a model for worship, praise and prayer. It also gives me a dose of the Old Testament as I concentrate on the New Testament for a while.

Although I’m not studying the Psalms–just reading, pondering and praying with them, I was looking for something short to read as a good overview and to give me a little more insight into them. I came across this and want to pass it along.

Hermeneutical and Homiletical Musings on the Psalms by Randy McKinion at Expository Thoughts
Be sure to notice the link to Part 2 at the bottom of the page.

I’ve come to enjoy and look forward to my time with a Psalm each day. I highly recommend it.