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Romans 9:25-10:13 What shall we say, then? That Gentiles who did not pursue righteousness have attained it, that is, a righteousness that is by faith; but that Israel who pursued a law that would lead to righteousness did not succeed in reaching that law. Why? Because they did not pursue it by faith, but as if it were based on works. They have stumbled over the stumbling stone, as it is written, “Behold, I am laying in Zion a stone of stumbling, and a rock of offense; and whoever believes in him will not be put to shame.” ~ Romans 9:30-33 Read, listen, and believe. Do not let anyone change what the scriptures say. Read it, believe it, and do it. Salvation is by believing in the one and only way to God and that is through Jesus Christ and not works which the Jews were trying to do. It was their stumbling block then and still is today. Come out of trying to do good works to earn salvation and place your faith in Jesus Christ the only TRUTH and way to God. Time is growing short and no one has the promise of a tomorrow. Please come to know Jesus today. But what does it say? “The word is near you, in your mouth and in your heart” (that is, the word of faith that we proclaim); ~ Romans 10:8 The gospel is referred to as the Word of faith, or the Word of God, since it is what God spoke, or communicated, to man. Romans 10:17; Hebrews 6:5; Hebrews 11:3. According to the gospel, doctrines are to be believed on the basis of the righteousness of Christ received by faith, and because it proposes Christ as the only object of faith, and encourages souls to believe in him for salvation and life. God has only one way for us to be right with Him, according to the Bible. In Romans 3:22, Christ makes us right with God by placing our faith in him. Regardless of who we are, this is true for everyone who believes; preaching the gospel without Jesus Christ as the only way is useless. For “everyone who calls on the name of the Lord will be saved.” ~ Romans 10:13 #Christ #Jesus #bible #gospel Know the Bible

“Brothers, sons of the family of Abraham, and those among you who fear God, to us has been sent the message of this salvation. ~ Acts 13:26 To those among you who fear God! Is death something you fear? Death is an unknown territory for us, so I believe we all fear it. It is not unknown territory to Jesus, though. Unlike all other people, he raised himself from the dead after dying. Just type "Who raised himself from the dead?" in a search engine and see whose name comes up. You should look to him for information about who you should fear. (Matthew 10:28). Acts 13 begins with Paul spreading the Gospel in this way. We still need to focus on this message today. This message is again taken to the synagogue, not because this is a church building, but to open people's eyes to the false religion being taught there. Let it be known to you therefore, brothers, that through this man forgiveness of sins is proclaimed to you, and by him everyone who believes is freed from everything from which you could not be freed by the law of Moses. ~ Acts 13:38-39 Know the Bible

There is something so satisfying about knowing that nothing compares with God’s Word. It is not just the record of religious history but actually originated in the mind of God. 2 Tim. 3:16–All Scripture is God-breathed and is useful for teaching, rebuking, correcting, and training in righteousness.” Teaching=instructing, educating, and assisting discovery Rebuking=censure severely, lecture Correcting=making reparations, amending, discipling, enforcing obedience Training=developing behavior by instruction, refining God’s Word has all these qualities. Besides that it is forever. Ps. 119:89–“Your word, Lord, is eternal; it stands firm in the heavens.” Ps. 138:2–“Thou hast magnified thy Word above all thy name.” The Word of God is foundational and permanent in every one who is a believer. Praise the Lord for His excellent Word.

I feel led by The Holy Spirit to start and lead a bible study small/cell group ( preferably for men because at this point in time, I am a single male ), In any case, I'm trying to search the internet for some good biblically focused bible study small/cell group books/websites. I say biblically focused because I prefer books that would focus on discussing bible passages and verses as opposed to books/websites that revolve around Christian anecdotes. In any case, please feel free to suggest some books/websites, and possibly list out their pros and cons. Thanks.

The Gospel According to Mark introduction I will begin my study today with a brief outline. I have already done this, so I will simply give you an idea of the notes I already have. Just a quick note: I am not a theologian. So this is just how I see it and I'm bound to make mistakes. I do appreciate any input but also remember that I am just saying things as I see them. 1. Vital statistics: Author: John Mark. Barnabas' cousin. Peter was probably also involved in the writing of this Gospel. Mark was under his influence. Many believe this Gospel to be a collection of Peter's memories. Date written: probably anywhere between 55 and 65AD with the later dates the most likely) Purpose: To present the person, work and teaching of Jesus Original audience: Roman Christians. Special features: - probably the first Gospel of the four - Records more miracles than any other Gospel and more miracles than sermons. - Presents Jesus as a suffering servant who would become King - It's the most chronological Gospel - Intended to also encourage struggling, suffering believers 2. A drama in 3 parts: The Gospel of Mark is all about action. It reminds of the old saying: "actions speak louder than words." Jesus doesn't just say who He is, He demonstrates it throughout the Gospel. The following outline is based on the Bible Project's presentation of Mark. I will be using that as a guide. I think it makes a lot of sense. There are three parts here. All of these point to a conclusion that I will hint at now and then and which I will come back to once we get to the closing summary. The exact beginning and ending in terms of chapter and verse is not the point. It's just seems to me to be the most logical point of departure. ● The first part (Chapter 1 - 8:1 26) is here called "In Galillee: Who is this Jesus?" All of this take place around Galilee. Jesus, His core message and His ministry are presented. It leaves the reader with no doubt about His identity. It also focuses on how different groups of people react to His arrival and His teachings. There's also a lot about the calling of the disciples and the beginning of their training. ● Part 2 (Chapter 8:27 - 10) we will call "On the Way: What it means for Jesus to be the Messiah". At first this still takes place around Galilee but towards the end we are heading for Jerusalem. Again, the response of the disciples and other groups is also featured. Once it is clear to the reader/listener who Jesus is, it also becomes clear that most of the people around Him have a deep misunderstanding about what the Messiah would look like and what His mission is. Jesus challenges their way of thinking and turns their whole world upside down. He makes it clear that the Messiah has to suffer. And not only that but that faith, humility, serving, selflessness, etc are the keys to Godly success, in contrast to worldly success. The disciples, religious leaders and general public respond either with fear, ignorance or anger. ● Part 3 Chaper 11 - 16) can be called: " Jerusalem: How Jesus fulfills His calling as the Messianic King." Jesus arrives in Jerusalem. In this part He asserts His authority, but still remains humble (e.g a royal entry on a donkey.) He also confronts and debates the leaders, and then the vital moments around Jesus crucifixion, resurrection and His final words to His Disciples. Something I think that is important to note is that it is important for us to put ourselves in the shoes of the people as they appear here. Regardless of their attitude or actions, it is important to understand their point of view, even if it is wrong. At this time, they had been occupied by Rome for a long time. It was 400 years since they had prophetic input. And yet they anticipated that a great prophet or the Messiah would come soon. It is clear thst Jesus was not who they expected. There are some interesting ironies here. So that's the outline. I hope you enjoyed it. We dive into part 1 later.

I've been a Pentecostal/Charismatic Christian for around 10 years now, and I grew up Catholic/Orthodox Christian. Therefore, I do have basic understanding of well-known parts of the Bible. Also, a few years ago, I read through the entire bible from beginning to end. However, when I completed reading the bible a few years ago, it was sort of like speed reading. I'd be reading so quickly through Leviticus, Numbers, Psalms, etc., withOut really putting any time and effort into understanding the content. Now, I'm reading the bible from beginning to end again. However, this time I'm reading it quite slowly, and then meditating on what I read. Furthermore, all the aforementioned reading is part of my daily personal devotions. My concern is that as I spend a lot of time on Leviticus, Numbers, etc., in my daily devotions then am I missing out by Not spending daily time reading Matthew, Mark, Luke and/or John and/or Epistles and/or any of the other more well known parts of the bible? To elaborate, if I spend my morning daily devotion time(which is usually around 20 minutes to 1 hour on weekdays, and maybe 3 to 5 hours on weekends) reading over Solomon's Temple's dimension and architecture design described in 1 Kings 6 and 2 Chronicles 3-4 then isn't it bad that I miss out on reading and meditating over Matthew, Mark, Luke and/or John and/or Epistles and/or any of the other more well known parts of the bible during my daily devotions? Furthermore, if anyone knows about any intelligent, practical bible reading plans, tactics strategies, techniques then could you please describe and expound upon said topics? ****Update: (Interesting Side info) 1 Corinthians 10:1-13 are bible verses within the New Testament (NT) that emphasizes the importance of reading, reflecting and meditating upon Old Testament (OT) scripture. Here is an key excerpts from 1 Corinthians 10:1-13 (1 Corinthians 10:1-13 Key Excerpts ) "For I do not want you to be unaware, brethren, that our fathers.......6 Now these things happened as examples for us,........11 Now these things happened to them as an example, and they were written for our instruction, upon whom the ends of the ages have come. " ******************************************************************************************************************************* Blessings to All in Jesus Christ & Thank you in Advance.