Some of my Favorite Scriptures

Following are some of the scriptures which have really spoken to me over the years. You may wish to read my discussion on "Is The Bible The Word of God?" before reading these. All are from the "American King James Version", which is simply the a public domain version of the King James Version with "thee" and "thou" replaced with "you" and "y’all" where correct.

1st Corinthians, Chapter 2:

12Now we have received, not the spirit of the world, but the spirit which is of God; that we might know the things that are freely given to us of God. 13Which things also we speak, not in the words which man's wisdom teaches, but which the Holy Ghost teaches; comparing spiritual things with spiritual. 14But the natural man receives not the things of the Spirit of God: for they are foolishness to him: neither can he know them, because they are spiritually discerned.

This was the first verse to really jump out at me after I made a decision to read in belief, rather than disbelief. I was just cruisin’ along in the Good Book and stopped on this verse. V. 14 is the one that snagged me and the rest made sense later. The whole passage clearly shows that God’s spirit is what allows us to understand the Bible, not our own logic.  This spirit is given to us "freely", by the grace of God, and it does not come from "man's wisdom", but from the Holy Spirit.  After I chewed on this for awhile, this verse was shown to me:

Proverbs, Chapter 3

5Trust in the LORD with all your heart; and lean not to your own understanding. 6In all your ways acknowledge him, and he shall direct your paths. 7Be not wise in your own eyes: fear the LORD, and depart from evil.

Consider these verses with an open heart and see if they speak to you.

Ezekiel, Chapter 33

11Say to them, As I live, said the Lord GOD, I have no pleasure in the death of the wicked; but that the wicked turn from his way and live: turn you, turn you from your evil ways; for why will you die, O house of Israel?

2nd Peter, Chapter 3

9The Lord is not slack concerning his promise, as some men count slackness; but is long-suffering to us-ward, not willing that any should perish, but that all should come to repentance.

Acts, Chapter 17

26And has made of one blood all nations of men for to dwell on all the face of the earth, and has determined the times before appointed, and the bounds of their habitation; 27That they should seek the Lord, if haply they might feel after him, and find him, though he be not far from every one of us: 28For in him we live, and move, and have our being; as certain also of your own poets have said, For we are also his offspring.

Genesis, Chapter 3:

1Now the serpent was more subtle than any beast of the field which the LORD God had made. And he said to the woman, Yes, has God said, You shall not eat of every tree of the garden? 2And the woman said to the serpent, We may eat of the fruit of the trees of the garden: 3But of the fruit of the tree which is in the middle of the garden, God has said, You shall not eat of it, neither shall you touch it, lest you die. 4And the serpent said to the woman, You shall not surely die: 5For God does know that in the day you eat thereof, then your eyes shall be opened, and you shall be as gods, knowing good and evil. 6And 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 to her husband with her; and he did eat. 7And the eyes of them both were opened, and they knew that they were naked;

Here we have the first sin. God told Adam and Eve something ("Don’t eat from that tree") and then the serpent came along and said "Did God really say that? That’s not true!". Eve had a choice here. She could have obeyed God- and she knew His word because she repeated it to the serpent- but she chose instead to listen to the lies of the serpent. And so often, that’s the case today. We know what the Bible says and we know that it claims to be the Word of God. But we listen to others who say "Did God really say that? That’s not really what he meant! This is what he really meant…." Instead of listening to God, we listen to the serpent, even today.

Genesis 3:

12And the man said, The woman whom you gave to be with me, she gave me of the tree, and I did eat. 13And the LORD God said to the woman, What is this that you have done? And the woman said, The serpent beguiled me, and I did eat.

After we’ve listened to the serpent, then what? Here we see Adam and Eve passing the buck. Adam says "the woman whom you gave to me (oh, poor pitiful me!)….", and Eve says "the serpent fooled me….". How often do we do this, even today? Make excuses, pass the buck, blame someone else, anything but take the blame squarely where it rests, on me the individual. Contrast this to David’s confession after sinning with Bathsheba and having her husband killed:

Psalm 51:

3For I acknowledge my transgressions: and my sin is ever before me. 4Against you, you only, have I sinned, and done this evil in your sight: that you might be justified when you speak, and be clear when you judge.

David took the blame, acknowledged it, and expected to suffer the consequences. Not once in the entire confession did he drag Bathsheba into the picture. God chastened him, but then restored in him a clean and contrite heart. How different are the two cases!

Proverbs 22:

6Train up a child in the way he should go: and when he is old, he will not depart from it.

This is the basis of our homeschooling efforts and it is a loaded verse. Read it carefully- it doesn’t say "teach" a child, or "guide" a child. It says "train up" a child. Training is a series of small teaching steps and the releasing the pupil to do a task himself. If he fails, he needs more training. If he succeeds, we can move on. It’s not "hoping for the best"- it’s a deliberate effort to "train". "Child" in the original language means "one who is dependent". It has nothing to do with age! A "child" could be a 45-year old. And conversely, "old" means "independent", again nothing to do with age. How different this approach is from the public school system which is age-based. And what about "the way he should go"? Should he go on the wide easy path, or the narrow path? Here’s what Jesus said in Matthew 7:14: "Because strait is the gate, and narrow is the way, which leads to life, and few there be that find it.". Jesus also said, in John 14:6 "I am the way, the truth, and the life: no man comes to the Father, but by me". So, what is "the way" in which the child should go?

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