Offense Defense > Farrell's Bible Notes

Day 91: Judges 13-15; John 11:1-29

.Judges 13:1 | (Mar.10.2012) Like I confess in my poem The Tale of Many Men they "repented repeatedly, but still did the same thing" (p.28 Seeking Solace: Finding Peace and Comfort in Times of Distress).

.Judges 13:2 | (Mar.10.2012) Manoah is Samson's dad. I'm not sure if Noah's name was has anything to do with his name.

.Judges 13:3 | (Mar.10.2012) Samson is a miracle baby, like John the Baptist, Jesus, and the child in 2 Kings 4:14-17.

.Judges 13:5 | (Mar.10.2012) The Nazarite lifestyle is mentioned before in scripture.

.Judges 13:6 | (Mar.10.2012) We're not told her name here. And the angel doesn't tell her his name either (verse 18).

.Judges 13:6-7 | (Mar.10.2012) The angel came in the form of a man. Samson's mother describes him as a "man of God" and says "his name" and "him," and "he." Zechariah 5:9 may be the only mention of angels that have the form of women. We should remember though that angels are beings made by God, not from procreation, so the possibilities of their diversity and appearances are probably endless, since God did not have to make any to look like each other.

.Judges 13:7 | (Mar.10.2012) "a Nazarite to God from the womb to the day of his death" probably means that in God's eyes he was always a Nazarite, no matter what he did or didn't do (including taking a Nazarite vow).

.Judges 13:8-9 | (Mar.10.2012) Manoah asks God for the angel to come to "us," but when the angel comes back, he just comes to the woman, like he did before in verse 6. Manoah may have been feeling left out, since he never got to see the angel. Monoah does finally catch up to him in verse 11 though. Luke 2:8-9 is another instance where an angel appears in a field to give information concerning a miracle baby.

.Judges 13:12 | (Mar.10.2012) Manoah knows he has little time with the angel, and makes good use of it by asking the right questions: "how shall we order the child, and how shall we do unto him?" He didn't waste time dwelling on less important questions in his mind like "why did you just come to my wife and not first come to me?" More people should do like Manoah, and seek God about raising their individual children. A child may need to be raised differently than the others if that child has a different purpose. God may have a different purpose for that child than the parents have, and it would be beneficial for the parents to find that out instead of treating the child like their own little project.

.Judges 13:16 | (Mar.10.2012) Angels don't eat like humans (6:21).

.Judges 13:18 | (Mar.10.2012) LOL, awkward. This must have been pretty embarrassing. ~~The angel knows that his wife tried to get personal info out of him already in 13:6.~~ Man, just go ahead and be quiet and proceed with the offering. The angel was like "look sir, I'm just trying to do my job, and you keep asking me all these questions. Let's just get this over with so I can go home okay? Now just go ahead and put your meat on the thing over there like I asked you to, and go sit down and be quiet like your wife is doing. And you wonder why I kept avoiding you in the first place. Go sit down."

.Judges 13:23 | (Mar.10.2012) True

.Judges 14:5-6 | (Mar.10.2012) Samson and the lion. Verse 5 says it was a young lion. I don't know if that's a good or bad thing. It could mean it wasn't as strong as an older lion, or it could mean that it was more agile and less likely to get tired out.

.Judges 14:15 | (Mar.10.2012) 16:1 after his wife was given to his friend.

.Judges 14:17 | (Mar.10.2012) Some women really know how to cry well. Any newborn baby can cry for an hour. Who wants to be shown up by a baby? She cried for seven days. That takes some real skill. You've gotta time your water intake right so you don't go to the bathroom too much (it's hard to cry while going to the bathroom), but just enough so you can keep those tears flowing and those vocal cords lubricated. Nobody believes a dry cry, especially if no sound is coming out. This is the Olympics; you don't get here without training. You've gotta get your strategy together and have stick-to-itiveness, and she stuck to it for seven days; puppy-dog eyes and everything. She knew that's all she would have to cry since in verse 12 Samson said they only had seven days to figure it out. I'm sure she used what they told her in verse 15 as her motivation (that they were going to burn her and her father's house with fire). Come on, you can't cry for seven days without a good source of motivation and a good consequence for failure.

.Judges 14:20 | (Mar.10.2012) 15:2. "whom he had used as his friend." I've never heard it said that way. Will you use me as a friend? Just kind of sounds funny.

.Judges 15:1 | (Mar.10.2012) "But her father would not suffer him to go in." ("suffer" means "allow")

.Judges 15:2 | (Mar.10.2012) "I gave her to they companion" 14:20. You did what?!

.Judges 15:6 | (Mar.10.2012) highlighted. Wait, did they just say that Samson gave away his own wife?

.Judges 15:4 | (Mar.10.2012) Firefox

.Judges 15:13 | (Mar.10.2012) "two new cords" - should have had a threefold cord (Ecclesiastes 4:12).

.Judges 15:15 | (Mar.10.2012) "a new jawbone" is going to be more resilient than an old brittle jawbone. Everybody knows that. If this happened today, you'd have someone on QVC the next day selling new Jawbones with a new easy grip handle.

.Judges 15:20 | (Mar.10.2012) Samson became a 20 year judge... WITHOUT A DEGREE?! Not today. I guess this is how his story ended up in the book of Judges. If he wasn't a judge, perhaps we would have never heard about his story. There are plenty people who have done wildly impressive things, that don't get too much recognition.

.John 11:1 | (Mar.10.2012) "Lazarus, of Bethany" Luke 16:20 (not sure if this is the same Lazarus).

.John 11:2 | (Mar.10.2012) John 12:2-3; Lazarus is Mary's brother.

.John 11:3 | (Mar.10.2012) "he whom thou lovest is sick." highlighted

.John 11:4 | (Mar.10.2012) "not unto death" must mean that this is not the outcome. He dies in our sense of dying, but as Jesus sees it in 11:11, he's sleeping, because he will wake up again. "Christian Science" as they call it (a religion) is contrary to this scripture because they teach that any sickness cannot be of God.

.John 11:11 | (Mar.10.2012) 11:4; Matthew 27:52-53

.John 11:13 | (Mar.10.2012) Lazarus was dead according to how man sees it.

.John 11:14 | (Mar.10.2012) according to their perception, and what they determine to be death, Jesus can say "Lazarus is dead."

.John 11:15 | (Mar.10.2012) "to the intent that ye may believe" and even that they may believe the resurrection of Christ.

.John 11:16 | (Mar.10.2012) highlighted "that we may die with him."

.John 11:26 | (Mar.10.2012) highlighted "And whosoever liveth and believeth in me shall never die."

Day 92: Judges 16-18; John 11:30-57

.Judges 16:1 | (Mar.12.2012) Samson went in unto a harlot, but it was after his wife was taken from him and sounds like the Philistines had actually killed her. That doesn't justify him going in unto a harlot, but it would also not qualify as adultery either. 14:15; 15:1-2; 15:6

.Judges 16:4 | (Mar.12.2012) again, remember Samson's wife had been taken from him and burned with fire.

.Judges 16:5 | (Mar.12.2012) again, the love of money

.Judges 16:13 | (Mar.12.2012) So let me get this right, she's mad at him for telling her lies, but she's tying him up in his sleep? What about that? That's not okay either. Where I come from, tying people up in their sleep is a good way to get them to lie to you again. This is not a trusting relationship at all; I guess love really is blind.

.Judges 16:20 | (Mar.12.2012) He had been lying, trying to hold onto her.

.Judges 16:21 | (Mar.12.2012) blinded him. verse 28.

.Judges 16:28 | (Mar.12.2012) Like Moses, God would not like others to mistakenly think their "god" was greater.

.Judges 17:7 | (Mar.12.2012) How did he get to be a Levite, yet he's from Judah? (Dec.10.2012) Levites didn't have their own land, remember?

.Judges 18:20 | (Mar.12.2012) What kind of weak-hearted, unlearned priest is this?

.Judges 18:21 | (Mar.12.2012) The word "carriage" is said to mean "baggage" and is probably the origin of the word "car." (updated Dec.10.2012)

.John 11:33 | (Mar.10.2012) It's possible that Jesus was also seeing a foreshadow of His own situation.

.John 11:35 | (Mar.10.2012) Jesus possibly wept from seeing this as a foreshadow of his own situation. He may have wept for seeing their unbelief. He may also have wept because He was a person very in tune with others feelings, and He may have felt their pain so much that it caused Him to weep.

.John 11:41 | (Mar.12.2012) "where the dead was laid." Notice he is still referred to as being dead, instead of sleeping. Also highlighted "Father, I thank thee that thou has heard me."

.John 11:44 | (Mar.12.2012) "a napkin" 20:7 says Jesus also had a napkin on when He was laid to rest.

.John 11:48 | (Mar.12.2012) selfish motives

.John 11:49 | (Mar.12.2012) the high priest sounds like he was the only one. (note to self: must look to see if in times past were there more than one high priest at a time, or was there just one high priest, and the rest were priests.)

.John 11:51 | (Mar.12.2012) seems he was one of the only people who understood, but I say that, not as if a prophecy comes from one's own understanding, but because true prophecy doesn't. It comes from God.

.John 11:52 | (Mar.12.2012) "gather together in one" as is said in John 17:11, 10:16, and 11:16.

Day 93: Judges 19-21; John 12

.Judges 20:29-35 | This is a quick summary of what happens in verses 36-46. Notice it says "as at other times." This was a tactic they had done before in Joshua 8:13-25 to Ai and had done something similar in Jericho (Josh 8:2). Liers in wait is a term used to describe people who are lying low, undetected or unsuspected and waiting until an appointed time to rise up, as the 9/11 terrorists did here in America in 2001. It was a tactic that worked for them, so they used it again and again.

.Judges 20:35 | Those 25,000 Benjamites that were killed are the 18,000 (in verse 44), 5,000 (in v.45) and 2,000 (in v.45). Verse 26 reiterates this. These are just the ones that drew the sword, actively fighting against the children of Israel.

.Judges 20:36 | This says they trusted the liers (a different word from liars, which are those who bear false witness). This lets us know that the liers were in their society, interacting with the people, not just hiding out in a cave somewhere unseen.

.Judges 20:46-48 | Aside from the 25,000 who "drew the sword" against the children of Israel, there were another 600 men who were killed. These 600, instead of fighting, turned and fled into the wilderness where they got killed. 25,600 total.

.John 12:1 | (Jan.26.2012) Some people think this verse conflicts with Mark 14:1. Let's take a look. (notes below are a duplicate of Mark 14:1 notes)
Was this meal supper or some other meal of the day? (people have to eat in the morning too).
John 12:2 says it was supper.
Did this supper happen six days before the passover or did it happen at the time of the passover?
All we know is that it was some time between the 8th and the 13th of the month (John 12:1; Mark 14:1). Jesus arrived to Bethany around the 8th, and the Passover feast started on the 14th (Exodus 12:6). Mark 14:1 says after two days was the feast, giving us some idea of when the chief priests and scribes were plotting, but just because he talks about both events at the same time, does not allow us to say that both events were happening on the same day (the plotting / Jesus at Simon's supper). So we can't just apply verse one's time reference to verse three, which talks about Jesus eating supper at Simon's, with Martha and Mary who broke the alabaster box. However, John 12:1 says Jesus came to Bethany six days before the passover, but it doesn't say this particular supper happened on the first day He arrived. The Bible covers thousands of years, so it can't always tell when the exact day was of every single event, or else it would be much longer because of unnecessary information, which would detract from the facts and lessons that are important. It tells what we need to know, and I don't think we need to know the exact day of this supper. We know approximately what day it was, and that's enough.
If we don't need to know the exact date of this supper, then why am I addressing the issue?
The reason why I'm addressing this now is because people have taken these two verses, Mark 14:1 and John 12:1, and wrongly claimed that the two writers are telling conflicting stories, when in actuality, they are just reading it wrong. It's similar to when people see the title of my first book, Verbalizions, but they say "Verbalizations." It says "Verbalizions," but their brain wrongly adds an "at" in there, because the brain thinks it's smart and tells them that it says "Verbalizations." If I ever denied writing a book called Verbalizations, then they would think I was lying, and they would feel like they couldn't trust me. So I'd have to explain to them that they saw it wrongly, to show to them that I'm not a liar. Therefore, they can still trust me because I really didn't write a book called Verbalizations. This is what has happened with these verses, so I'm pointing out what it actually says, and what it doesn't say, so brethren with doubts will know that they can still trust the Bible, and so all brethren may have a ready answer for those who question. Mark and John are giving correct information. In this case, people read that Jesus arrived six days before passover, then they assume that this supper was eaten six days before the passover. But Jesus had to eat supper everyday. And it doesn't tell us which one of those days this was. Then they read that the chief priests and scribes were plotting a day before (or two days) before the passover, and they assume that the dinner happened on that same day, but the text does not actually say that.
When was the Passover?
This is another area that could throw us for a loop and cause us to assume we've found an error, when in fact, we just didn't understand what we were reading. The passover meal was on the evening of 14th of the month Abib (Exodus 12:6-8; 13:4; Deuteronomy 16:1), but the Feast of Unleavened Bread, which went along with that, was from the evening of the 14th through the evening of the 21st. So the feast was not just one day, it was actually seven days. But that seven days is sometimes referred to as a day. I'll explain this in more detail below.
Does the scripture say the Passover and Feast of Unleavened Bread was seven days or eight days? 7 or 8 days?
The scripture says "seven days," but those seven days covered eight calendar dates, from the 14th through the 21st. Let's look and see how that's possible. Judging by the calendar dates, it looks like it is actually eight days if we don't understand how the seven days is counted. I'm going to use the information we're given in scripture to thoroughly explain how we may understand it. It's long, because I've tried to be as thorough as possible, but it will only take you a fraction of the time to read it as it took me to research and write it, so have fun.
In Exodus 12:2 God establishes the Passover, telling them this is to be the first month of the year to them. This tells us that God is putting them on a different calendar system than others, although they still live among others. In Exodus 12:3-8 God says that on the 10th day each household sets apart a lamb to be sacrificed, which is killed on the 14th day in the evening and eaten that night with unleavened bread and bitter herbs. Exodus 12:6 actually says the lamb is kept "until the 14th day," so we see when the word "until" is used, it includes the day mentioned (i.e. until the 14th day means from day 10 through 14, not 10 through 13); we'll need to know this to understand following scripture that says "until the 21st day of the month". In verse 10-11, God tells them to eat it in haste and leave no left-overs (scarf it down), so it's not a sit back and take a bite here and there and shoot the breeze for an hour type of meal. Okay now, this next part can get confusing, so I'll try to make it simple. From what Exodus 12:15 says, the unleavened bread is supposed to be eaten for seven days, beginning on the 14th of the month. However, Exodus 12:18 says it ends on the 21st. The confusing part is that 14 15 16 17 18 19 20 and 21 is eight days, not seven days like it says in 12:15. Here's my explanation. From Ex 12:15, we know that the first of the seven days is the 14th. From Ex 12:18, we know that the last of the seven days is the 21st (I know that seems impossible because on the calendar it's eight days, but bear with me). In addition to that, God says in Leviticus 23:6 that on the 15th day of the month is the Feast of Unleavened Bread and seven days they must eat unleavened bread. Fifteen to twenty-one is seven days, but 14 to 21 is eight, but the scripture 12:15 says that 14th is the first day, because it's on the 14th that the leaven is put out of the house. We also know that when it says "until" the 21st day it includes the 21st day, because of how the word "until" was used in Exodus 12:6. How could the seven days be from the 15th until the 21st like Leviticus says, but also be from the 14th until the 21st like Exodus says? Again, this is my explanation, but is the only thing I see can possibly make sense: Remember that this is said to be the 14th through 21st day of the month, yet God tells them in Ex 12:2, this is supposed to be the first month to them, although it's not the first month to everyone else. God places them on a different calendar system. If He can do that, then He can reasonably also set a different start and end time of their days as well, at least when it comes to this Feast of Unleavened Bread. It makes perfect sense to me that their first day of this seven days starts on the evening of the 14th day of the month. It ends on the 15th at evening. The second day starts on the 15th at evening, and ends on the 16th at evening. This explains how the first day of the Feast of Unleavened Bread can start on the 14th of the month, like Exodus 12:15 says, yet the first day of Unleavened Bread is also the 15th day of the month, like Leviticus 23:6 says. This would mean that their days went from evening to evening, allowing the 14th and 15th to both be included in the first day, and both considered as the first day. This is not a new concept. In Genesis 1:5 it says "and the evening and the morning were the first day." It seems here that there was only evening and morning, not morning, noon, afternoon, midday, evening, night, and midnight like we have now. And that "evening" probably meant when it was dark outside, and "morning" was when it was light outside. Genesis 1:5 says God called the light Day, and the darkness He called Night, so we know that God saw it simply in terms of light and dark (or as we say, He was looking at it in black and white). It makes sense that God would start counting these days at night, because the Passover is done in remembrance of God bringing them out of Egypt on this same calendar date at night (Deuteronomy 16:1). So if we're looking at the 14th - 21st in this way, from evening to evening (or a day consisting of evening + morning, in Genesis 1:5 terms), then it is actually only seven days from the 14th until the 21st, not eight days. for understanding, I'll apply our clock system and say it is seven 24-hour periods. I believe it's on purpose, for clarity, that the words "of the month at even" were included at the end of Exodus 12:18 to specify that it's speaking of the 21st as a calendar date, not an evening+morning day. Seeing also that Exodus 12:19 says there should not even be any leaven found in anyone's house for this seven days, the 14th couldn't be considered as one of the seven days because on the 14th is when they put the leaven out of the house, meaning that at earlier on the 14th there was leaven found in the house, which would put them in violation. So the calendar date of the 14th can't be considered as the first of the seven days, because it would contain leaven, but if the evening of the 14th was considered the first day, then it complies. Now let's bring this whole topic back to where it started, which was Mark 14 and John 12. Okay, so we've seen three ways in which the word "day" is used (1.calendar date | 2.evening+morning period | 3.when it was light outside - God called the light day and the darkness night). There is a fourth way in which the word "day" is used. And it is not an antiquated way. We still use it this way today, when we say things like "back in the day," or like older people say, "back in my day." People say "it's a new day in age." The word "day" in these instances is being used in reference to a loosely defined time period that consists or several days, months, or years. God uses it in this way in Exodus 12:17, when He says "and ye shall observe the Feast of Unleavened Bread; for this selfsame day have I brought your armies out of the land of Egypt: Therefore shall ye observe this day in your generations by an ordinance for ever." He's saying observe this "day," but the Feast of Unleavened Bread is actually a time period of seven days, not just a single day (unless this is speaking of the actual day they left Egypt). So here in Mark 14:1-2, it says after two days was the feast of the passover, and the chief priests and scribes were planning on how to take Jesus and kill Him, "But they said, Not on the feast day, lest there be an uproar of the people." It sounds like they are actually on the calendar date of the passover meal (the 14th), but as we see in the next verse and what's mentioned in John that Jesus is sitting down eating supper, which is not the passover meal. This supper was eaten at Simon the leper's house (Mark 14:3), but He ate the Passover meal somewhere else (in a large upper room in the city - Mark 14:13-15). So we know that this is not actually on the 14th, although they are near the time. Furthermore, the feast day (the Feast of Unleavened Bread), is a period of seven days, and they are using the term "day" in the way God uses it in Exodus 12:17. So they are somewhere near that seven day period, but they are not already in it. Remember, these are chief priests here; they know how to plan ahead and carefully orchestrate events, so they are not going to do their planning, and then on the same day try to go capture and kill Jesus like some dumb thugs. They operate more like lawyers than gangsters and thugs. So understanding these things, we can see that the time frame mentioned in Mark 14:1-3 is the same as that mentioned in John 12:1-2, and there is no conflict.
So why was Jesus here six days before?
Jesus, being the Passover Lamb, is supposed to be in the house four days before (Exodus 12:3-6). I don't know if He went into the house four days before or six days before, on the day when He actually arrived in town, but either way He would have been in the house for four days before. I do know that traveling by foot, one can face all sorts of distractions that could delay you, unlike traveling in an automobile where you are insulated from the outside world. So if you need to be somewhere on time, you do best to try to get there early. Now in Mark 14:1, they wouldn't have been plotting a murder on the day of the murder, so we can assume they are having their little meeting before the actual feast day (seven days). We must also remember that although Jesus was the Passover Lamb, He was not yet understood to be the Passover Lamb by everyone, so everybody still had their Passover lamb in all of their houses, as usual, just like every other year. And He did it also, because He was still of the children of Israel and couldn't break that ordinance, or appear to break it. God told them to observe this day in their generations by an ordinance forever (Exodus 12:17).

.John 12:4 | Judas Iscariot, who betrayed Jesus, was the son of a man named Simon. He was somebody's son. We sometimes think the evil person is some stranger from some strange place or something. Somehow, we think because someone has friends and family who love them, that they cannot be evil.

.John 12:5-6 | Here, we have Judas seemingly trying to fend for the needs of the poor. However, John points out that he was a thief and was all about the money he was trying to get. This is no different from today. There are people who pretend that they're so interested in helping out the poor and needy people around the world, when they're just trying to get their hands on some money, and care little about the needs of those people. There are some good ones, but for some, it's just an excuse to get their hands on some money.

.John 12:7-8 | Jesus must have known that the money may not have even made it to the poor anyway. He says also, "the poor always ye have with you." This doesn't mean that God hasn't provided enough for the needs of the poor to be met, but that there are always people who will steal it from them, embezzle it, or prevent them from having it. The problem is not lack of substance. The problem is evilness, selfishness and greed. Not everybody in these third world countries hurt for food, just like not everyone in the U.S. is going through a recession. There will always be poor people, because there are always people seeking opportunity to exploit their poverty. There will always be crime, not only because there are evil people to commit them, but also because crime pays for the crime fighters as well, gives them jobs (the police, military, legal system, everything that our country and the world revolves around). There will always be sickness because doctors, hospitals, pharmaceutical companies depend on it and get paid from people remaining sick; their job security. This is why we spend huge dollars on medical research for 30, 40, and 50 years and never usually see any breakthroughs, and when you hear about cures being found, they often disappear and sometimes the person who found them. If our problem is lack, it's lack of righteousness. It's 2009 and we are not in a recession or a depression; we are in an oppression.

.John 12:37 | This is an excellent example of how miracles do not make people believe. Some people argue that if they see God or see God's miracles, or hear His voice (as in verse 29) that they will believe in Him. Jesus walked on water, raised people from the dead, and all type of things that simply defy our laws of physics and reasoning, and the people still didn't believe. Although we say "seeing is believing" that is simply not the truth. Many people have seen and have not believed because if it's contrary to what they want to see, they will choose not to believe their eyes. "My eyes lied to me. It must have been an optical illusion." Read John 20:29-31.

Day 94: Ruth 1-4; John 13

.Ruth 1:11 | I believe the custom was for a young widow to marry within the same family of her husband who died. We saw this around Genesis 38 when Thamar (Tamar) lost her husband and was waiting for another one of her father-in-law's sons to grow up so she could marry him. These girls, Orpah (not Oprah) and Ruth, were going to wait till the lady had more sons and they grow up. Jesus was questioned about something similar to this. Some, seeking to trap Him with His own words asked if a woman marry a man who dies and then she marries his brother, which of them will she be with in Heaven (I think that was the question), to which Jesus responded that there will be no marrying nor giving in marriage in Heaven (I need to find that scripture, but can't search now. If you find it let me know).

.Ruth 4:12 | This Tamar was also put in a similar situation as Ruth, having lost her husband and was not given another of his brothers to marry. Pharez and Tamar are also mentioned in Matthew 1:3; Genesis 38, and I think Genesis 46. Tamar's story was not the most clean story though.

.John 13:8 | "no part with me" See Deuteronomy 14:29 for a better understanding of that phrase. This (verse 8) is likely symbolic that we need to be washed clean.

.John 13:9 | This was funny. Peter changed his mind real quick, huh?

.John 13:16 | In 15:20 Jesus reminds them that He says this.

.John 13:34-35 | Jesus also mentioned this in 15:12. This is how we are to be recognized as Jesus' disciples, not because we have on some Christian paraphernalia (if there were such a thing) or simply because we say His name. That's not our I.D. badge. This love is. Read 1 John 4 (John's first letter, chapter 4. Near the back of the Bible. 1 John is different from John, which is at the beginning of the New Testament).

Day 95: 1 Samuel 1-3; John 14

.1 Samuel 1:22 | (Mar.13.2012) baby dedication

.1 Samuel 2:18 | (Mar.13.2012) a child minister

.1 Samuel 2:19 | (Mar.13.2012) highlighted "year to year" and "the yearly sacrifice"

.1 Samuel 2:20 | (Mar.13.2012) done by a child minister

.1 Samuel 2:22 | (Mar.13.2012) bad kids is not always because of bad parents or lack of role model. See also verse 25.

.1 Samuel 2:25 | (Mar.13.2012) See verse 22 and notes.

.1 Samuel 3:20 | (Mar.13.2012) Prophets weren't appointed and established by ordinance by man.

.John 14:6 | "Jesus saith unto him, I am The Way, The Truth, and The Life: No man cometh unto the Father, but by me." | (Mar.13.2012) Jesus says here that He's the only way. What He says in this one verse presents the greatest challenge to anyone who chooses not to follow Christ. Because of what He says in this verse, many people have turned away from Him and denounced the Bible because that is the only real choice Jesus leaves them with if they choose not to follow Him. When He says He's the only way, people must choose one of these four positions:

Say that Jesus is telling the truth that He is the way, the truth, and the life, and that no man goes to the Father, except by Jesus.
Say that Jesus was making delusional claims and therefore a lunatic.
Say that Jesus was lying.
Say that the Bible is lying on Jesus, and that Jesus didn't really say that.

Whether they can prove it true or not, most non-believers will choose number four because that option allows them to place the blame on other men, which to them is a far more acceptable and safer thing to do than to try to place the blame on Jesus. They know that people have tried to discredit Jesus for over 2000 years and have not been able to succeed. An insane or delusional person doesn't make such a great and lasting impression on the world, and do the things that Jesus did while managing to live their whole life without ever committing a sin. To convict Jesus, they had to conspire and lie on Him. People can't say He was lying about being the only way, because then they'd have to regard Him as a liar, but the problem with that is that He is widely regarded as a prophet, even by people of other religions, and everyone knows you can't say someone's a prophet and also claim they are a liar. You can't claim someone is a true prophet and a liar at the same time. Therefore, unless people denounce the Bible and call it a book of lies, then they have to admit that what Jesus is saying here is true. Historically, most people have not been bold enough to outrightly denounce the Bible and call it a book of lies. They just have to allow enough doubt and suspicion into their hearts to decide to leave it alone for the moment and focus their attention on something else that's easier to deal with. As time passes, it is revealed that they didn't just simply leave it alone for the moment, but completely left it alone, never to have much else to do with it. If they were to have outrightly denounced it, they may have be called on to prove their claim, which they knew they would not be able to do. So they just try to avoid it and act like all of this never happened and that Jesus never said these words, or that these words of His were never recorded. The problem is that their pretending and ignoring does not change the fact that it happened, and that Jesus did say this. And doubting or neglecting God's word is essentially the same as not believing it. Because if a person believed it, they would not doubt and neglect it. So this actually only leaves people with two options: Either believe Jesus is the only way and follow Him, or denounce the Bible.
(Mar.22.2012) Non-believers can still try to avoid denouncing the Bible by trying to wrestle a different meaning out of John 14:6, but once they are done with that verse, they've gotta deal with Acts 14:10-12, wherein a man is healed by the name of Jesus Christ of Nazareth and it is then said "Neither is there salvation in any other: for there is none other name under heaven given among men, whereby we must be saved."

.John 14:11 | (Mar.13.2012) Like the angels who came in God's stead. When people in times past dealt with those angels, they knew they were dealing with God and many even referred to their experiences as that (i.e. the angel in the burning bush speaking to Moses, Jacob wrestling the angel, and the angel speaking to Samson's dad Manoah." The "or else" here in this verse allows us to see Him being flexible, and that the important thing right now is that they believe.

.John 14:12 | (Mar.13.2012) Knowing Jesus, when He says "greater works than these," He could be referring to causing people to believe without seeing. In other words, if we bring someone to believe in Christ without showing them signs and wonders, and Jesus caused them to believe by showing them signs and wonders, then our works could be considered greater, considering what Jesus says in John 20:29 to Thomas: "Because thou has seen me, thou has believed: blessed are they that not seen, and yet have believed."

Day 96: 1 Samuel 4-6; John 15

.1 Samuel 4:8 | (Mar.14.2012) This may be the only place where my Bible put a capital G for Gods. Usually there is a lowercase G for gods, when it's plural (gods, instead of God), because whenever it's plural, it's usually not talking about God Almighty. Even though, the original Hebrew word for God (Elohim) is plural, we use a singular form, probably due to the Father, the Word of God (son) and Holy Ghost being one. In this case, however, the Philistines do not understand their God, and say Gods. It's a capital G because it's referring specifically to God Almighty, and not some ambiguous gods (which aren't gods). I'm not sure if in Hebrew this would be written like "Elohims" or what, but I don't believe the Hebrew or ancient Hebrew at least lower and uppercase. I think they just had one case. And they didn't use the same type of letters as us either. So although we say the Hebrew was "Elohim," I believe that spelling is just a guide to help us hear how their Hebrew letters would be pronounced. And also, here in 1 Samuel 4:8, they are quoting what the Philistines said out of their mouth (not on paper). People don't talk in lowercase and capitals anyway, so it was the person who wrote down what they said who put it in lowercase or capitals.

.1 Samuel 4:9 | (Mar.14.2012) Looking at verse 7, we see that they are knowingly fighting against God. I don't know how dumb you have to be to purposely try to fight against God, but apparently there's some people out there.

.1 Samuel 4:18 | (Mar.14.2012) seemed more concerned about the ark than his sons. 2:22

.1 Samuel 5:6 | (Mar.14.2012) I'm still trying to find out what in the world emerods are. All I know at this point, is that it's something that the Lord could use to smite me if I get too out of line, so as of my current understanding, I don't like emerods too much. I think I'd rather get a belt or a switch.

.1 Samuel 5:7 | (Mar.14.2012) Dagon was their god. Dagon was either a mortal or a some little figurine idol they had created.

.John 15:2 | (Mar.14.2012) See, you're able to be cut off, even if you're in Christ. God is supplying you, so there's no excuse for being unfruitful! Look at the fig tree in Mark 11:20.

.John 15:4 | (Mar.14.2012) Galatians 5:22

.John 15:7 | (Mar.14.2012) Luke 4:4

.John 15:12 | (Mar.14.2012) 13:34

.John 15:13 | (Mar.14.2012) Genesis 44:33; John 3:16; 1 John 3:16

.John 15:14 | (Mar.14.2012) Notice the word "if." He says "if ye do whatsoever I command you." I know a lot of people don't want to hear it, but He's not friends with everybody. And He doesn't tell us to be friends with everybody either.

.John 15:19 | (Mar.14.2012) Proverbs 28:4

.John 15:20 | (Mar.14.2012) I'm saying this because I've seen it done just a few days ago. This is not a verse to be applied to pastors and the believers in the congregation. This says the servant is not greater than his lord, and the Bible says that Jesus is Lord. Man is not another man's lord, and is not supposed to be lording over people. He may lead them, teach them, be an example unto them, but he is not the Lord, no matter how many people he has signed up to be "members" (I put quotes there because many must still gain biblical understanding of what the term "member" actually means). Matthew 10:24 also says the disciple is not above his master. Before Jesus, John had disciples. John sent his disciples to follow Jesus. In Matthew 23:10, Jesus says "neither be ye called masters: for one is your master, even Christ." There again, this verse does not apply to pastors or any such person walking around among us. John 13:16 adds another variant in saying "the servant is not greater than his lord; neither he that is sent greater than he that sent him." Let's look back at what Jesus says earlier in Mark 9:37. After He sent a child in the midst of the Twelve who let the child come in among them, He says "Whosoever shall receive one of such children in my name, receiveth me: and whosoever shall receive me, receiveth not me, but Him that sent me." As with the other scriptures, John 13:16, is not meant to be used as a bulletin on a resume. It is not there for someone to say, "See, I've sent someone, therefore I'm greater than him." In other words, sending someone somewhere does not make the sender greater. It is not to be done or used as a credential, or as proof of credibility where one may say that if they ever sent anyone anywhere that they are always greater than that person, leaving that person to be underneath them for the remainder of their time on earth, and if that person were to ever seem to grow greater than the one who sent them that would automatically increase the senders importance. That's called a pyramid scheme. This is not that. And that's not a position men should be aspiring to gain. We should leave the throne-sitting for God. Christ sends the child among them, and because Christ is great to them, they let the child in. We have email, text messaging, and the US Postal Service now, but when a man sent a messenger to someone, it wasn't the messenger that was greater than the sender, it was the sender. The receiver received the message because it was from the sender. If a king had a message for another king, he'd send a messenger, a messenger wouldn't send the king to go deliver the message to another king. Now, we have a message from God, the King of kings, to share with the world. I do not take that message and then say it's mine, and then send someone else with that message to someone else and claim I am his sender. That's plagiarism. It's not my message. I myself am just a messenger sent. We are the sent. I can write an original poem, and send someone to deliver it, and in that regard I can be seen as being the greater, but that doesn't make me greater in every area of that person's life, just in regard to this transaction. It doesn't mean that the man I sent must submit to me in regard to God's Word; maybe in regard to my poem, but in regard to God's Word, he must submit to God. Our membership is in Christ. He is our head; we are the body (not neglecting that a husband is the head of his wife). Jesus says the world hates us because they hate Him. It's in Him that we move and have our being. We are one in Christ. Our membership is in Him; we are His body. He doesn't say, "the world hates you because they hate Bishop Jackson." This tells us that we're not walking around in Bishop Jackson's name, we're walking around in Jesus' name; at least we're supposed to be. But there are some who walk around in Bishop Jackson's name. And there are some who will ask you, in other words, who's manship are you under, and to them it will not suffice for you to simply represent Jesus Christ. They are looking for you to say "Bishop Jackson," "Pastor Gray," or "Reverend Jenkins," so they can accept or reject you based on whether they accept or reject those men. But I submit to you, brethren, that it is Christ that we are to be accepted or rejected for. It is Him that we are to be loved or hated for. Now Bishop Gray may send you to deliver something to someone for him and they may let you in the door because of their relationship with Bishop Gray, and that's fine for that instance, just as long as you don't forget and think that it's in Bishop Gray that you have your being. We must regard Acts 17:28, which says that it is in God that we live, move, and have our being. He is our Lord. Acts 17:27 (the previous verse) says that He is not far from EVERY one of us. To take it a step further, let's look to 1 Peter 4:11 where we are told "If any man speak, let him speak as the oracles of God; if any man minister, let him do it as of the ability which God giveth: that God in all things may be glorified through Jesus Christ, to whom be praise and dominion for ever and ever. Amen." No man should be trying to usurp the King's dominion over our life. And let us not be separated from each other by that; let us be as He purposed us, and be together one in Jesus Christ. As Paul also preached in 1 Corinthians 1:2-13, let us not say things that sound like "I am of Paul; and I of Apollos; and I of Cephas; and I of Christ" because Christ is not divided, and Pastor Jackson wasn't crucified for you, and none of us were baptized in the name of Bishop Gray.

.John 15:21 | (Mar.14.2012) As Pharaoh boldly admitted in Exodus 5:2. Pharaoh, you should have been ashamed of yourself for that.

.John 15:27 | (Mar.14.2012) 1 John 5:8

Day 97: 1 Samuel 7-9; John 16

.1 Samuel 8:5 | The people were coveting. That is, they were desiring what others had. They weren't simply doing this just because others had kings, but they were also operating in fear, not trusting in the Lord. Although kings were common, it doesn't mean that it's good for everyone to be up under a king. It also does not mean that every king is good and Godly either. This relates to us, both in the political arena, I need not say, but also in the spiritual arena as well. Many of us place more trust in man leading us, when we should be trusting in God to lead us. We do this even to the point of claiming that one is illegitimate if not under the rule and reign of man, whether that man be Godly or corrupt. And we do it because we see others do it, and think that's just the way it's supposed to be. That's called emulation, and is a work of the flesh.

.1 Samuel 8:6-7 | This is a key passage in the Bible and very much relates to our time now. First, we notice in verse 6, when faced with the decision, Samuel prayed to the Lord. Secondly, the Lord told Samuel how to properly look at the situation. It wasn't Samuel that they rejected, but they rejected the Lord. What does this mean for us? We need to realize that sometimes when we're faced with opposition, it's not always opposition against us, but may often be opposition against God. We must realize not to always take things personal. Sure, you can approach someone in an insensitive way and face rejection, when they are not rejecting God. These are times you may take it personally, evaluate yourself and do better next time. Sometimes though it doesn't matter how you present God's truth; the fact that it's God's truth is enough alone to cause some people to reject it. This is why we have so many corrupt leaders in the world today. This is why things have gotten so bad. This verse, 1 Samuel 8:7, is evidence that if people turn away from God, he may just let them have things their way, including the consequences.

.1 Samuel 8:7-8 | 10:18-19 correlates with these verses. God has still not stopped talking about how He brought them out of Egypt and saved them from their adversaries and oppression, yet they reject Him. I won't start naming groups of people in our society who have forgotten God and what He did for them, no matter how long ago, but I will point out that this is the same God, and among us, many of these same attitudes of man are still around. As in 7:12 there were often memorials placed for the people to remember what happened in those places where the Lord helped them.

.1 Samuel 8:15 | The word "tenth" was used here, but was not called a tithe. This shows us that although the tithe consisted of the tenth, the words "tithe" and "tenth" are not one and the same. An actual "tithe" must meet certain requirements and be for a certain purpose, aside from simply being a tenth of something. Numbers 18:26 even mentions how a tenth part of the tithe was offered up as a heave offering, but this although a tenth, was not called a tithe of a tithe.

.John 16:7 | 14:26 tells us that this Comforter is actually the Holy Ghost.

.John 16:8 | This tells what the Holy Ghost does. The Holy Ghost is a reprover. I'm not sure that a dictionary definition would best describe what this word reprove means, so check the concordance and see where else this word (reprove, reproof) is used in the Bible and how it's used to better understand its meaning, and the working of the Holy Ghost.

.John 16:12 | It's likely He says they can't bear what He would say to them, because they don't yet have the Comforter.

.John 16:13 | 14:26

.John 16:16 | They'll see Him again when they pass away and go to the Father also.

.John 16:28 | 1:14

Day 98: 1 Samuel 10-12; John 17

.1 Samuel 10:6 | This says Saul will prophesy with the prophets and be turned into another man. There's quite a few scriptures to reference here, so I'll just list them here: 1 Samuel 10:9,11; 8:10-19; 16:14; 19:23-24. Verse 9 says God gives him another heart (change of heart) for the better. Verse 11 speaks of the people witnessing him prophesying and recognizing this huge difference in him. 8:10-19 contains the warning to the people of how the king they would choose, Saul, would selfishly rule over them and not have their best interest at heart. 16:14 speaks of how the Spirit of the Lord departed from Saul and an evil spirit troubled him. 19:23-24 speaks also of Saul prophesying. Saul had a lot going on inside of him, but all that the people could see was the man presently before them, not the changes he would go through. This is why they needed to follow the direction of the Lord and not their own way.

.1 Samuel 10:11 | 9:1-3 tells about Saul's dad, Kish.

.1 Samuel 10:18 | Here again God talks about what He did for them, bringing them out of Egypt, which they must have forgotten.

.1 Samuel 10:19 | The message here is "your stubbornness will cost you." They were warned of what kind of King he would be, but they refused to listen.

.John 17:1-23 | This is written on the front cover of my first book, Verbalizions of Enlightenment: The Secret to the Pain.

.John 17:5 | This speaks of the deity of Christ. Jesus testifies here that He was glorified by His Father, and had glory before the world was. Remember that John 1:1 testifies that "In the beginning was the Word, and the Word was with God, and the Word was God." And that John 1:14 says "the Word was made flesh, and dwelt among us, (and we beheld his glory, the glory as of the only begotten of the Father,) full of grace and truth."

.John 17:11 | 10:16 speaks of us, His sheep, being one fold. 11:52 speaks also of being gathered together in one.

.John 17:12 | 10:28. This son of perdition He's speaking of is apparently Judas Iscariot who betrayed Him.

.John 17:21-22 | 1 John 5:7 says "There are three that bear record in heaven, the Father, the Word, and the Holy Ghost: and these three are one."

.John 17:23 | This relationship and oneness is spoken on slightly in 1 Corinthians 3:23 "ye are Christ's; and Christ is God's" and Ephesians 4:13, which I believe is the mark for the prize of the high calling of God in Christ Jesus spoken of in Philippians 4:13 (you can remember these verses by just reversing the numbers... Eph 4:13, Phil 3:14... and Philippians is the book right after Ephesians.) This word "perfect" or "perfect man" (as it says in Eph 4:13) is a key word you'll find throughout the Bible, including Hebrews 10:4. For the sake of time at the present moment, I won't get into all of Ephesians 4 right now, but please read Eph 4:11-16. When you read Ephesians 4, don't glance over the words or the order or placement of each word. I'd also suggest reading the King James Version here, simply because I know what this says and it's very thorough and purposefully written, and I'm sure others have tried to simplify it by paraphrasing or changing around wording, such as how NIV drops out the word "stature" where it should say "the measure of the stature of the fulness" not just "measure of the fulness." These little subtle word changes cause differences in understanding when you really get down to analyzing exactly what's being said. These differences in understanding lead to disunity, which is exactly what this is saying we need to get away from. Paul, in 1 Corinthians 1:10 also speaks of this being perfectly joined together (Eph 4:13,16) and being of one mind and judgment when he says "Now I beseech you, brethren, by the name of our Lord Jesus Christ, that ye all speak the same thing, and that there be no divisions among you; but that ye be perfectly joined together in the same mind and in the same judgment." Of course, this may not mean each person will have the exact same understanding, having different backgrounds and experiences, but it certainly does not agree with the "to each his own" way of thinking many of us have adopted these days. There are certain things, however, that do fall under the circumstances spoken of in Romans 14:5 "let every man be fully persuaded of his own mind." There are some who base their belief and understanding on what denomination they were raised in and what that denomination gives as the understanding of things, and not them each reading and studying God's word to come to an understanding for themselves, having their own relationship with God.

Day 99: 1 Samuel 13-14; John 18

.1 Samuel 13:4 | (Mar.15.2012) what's a garrison?

.1 Samuel 13:19-23 | (Mar.15.2012) So the Philistines thought that the Hebrews couldn't fight without swords and spears, but we see in verse 20, they used whatever else they had. Please don't ask me what a coulter or a mattock is. They're probably tools that make good weapons. And if I see you carrying one toward me, and you're holding it the wrong way, I'm going to let you know in my own special way that we're not friends anymore.

.1 Samuel 14:27 | (Mar.15.2012) "his eyes were enlightened" like Genesis 3:7.

.1 Samuel 14:29 | (Mar.15.2012) "...I tasted a little of this honey." He tried to make himself sound more innocent by saying he tasted "a little" of the honey. Brother, just say "I ate some honey." Adam didn't say "I tasted a little piece of fruit."

.1 Samuel 14:33 | (Mar.15.2012) God long ago instructed them not to eat blood, and made Himself very clear.

.1 Samuel 14:49 | (Mar.15.2012) Looks like "Michael," but I'm not sure how "Michal" is pronounced. Maybe it sounded more like Michelle. If you're reading this, and your name happens to be Michal, I'd like to hear from you. I'd be interested to know how it's pronounced.

.John 18:11 | (Mar.15.2012) Remember when He spoke about drinking of the cup in Matthew 20:23 and 26:39. Funny how in 20:23 it sounded like a something to be desired, but then in 26:39 we realize that it's clearly not.

.John 18:15-16 | (Mar.15.2012) The Loyal Disciple. I noticed here that it says "so did another disciple" follow Jesus along with Simon Peter. Unlike Peter, this disciple actually went in with Jesus, and even made himself known to the high priest, while Peter stood outside and acted like he didn't know Jesus. So I call him "The Loyal Disciple." It doesn't say whether this was one of the twelve apostles. It may have just been one of His many disciples; the twelve apostles were not His only disciples.

.John 18:16 | (Mar.15.2012) I don't recall the other scriptures telling what happened after Peter was identified, but we're told here that he was taken inside by her. Although verse 16 says "and brought in Peter" it's more likely saying that the other disciple spake unto her that brought him in, not that she brought him in right there in verse 16; because we see in verse 17 and 18 that he's still outside, and verse 17 starts with the word "then." That lets us know that after verse 16 he was still outside. It sounds like the writer is saying "and brought in Peter" just to identify her (the disciple spoke to the lady that brought in Peter). But perhaps I'm just seeing it wrong, and what is meant is that she brought him in the palace, but they were still outside the building, because in Mark 14:66 it says he was beneath in the palace, but yet in verse 67 we see he's warming himself. So it's likely they were inside the palace gates, but still outside of the doors.

.John 18:17 | (Mar.15.2012) So if we look at Mark 14:66-70 and Luke 22:56-the other gospels, we see that the damsel doesn't reveal that she was probably tipped off by the loyal disciple who came out and talked to her. It doesn't say that the loyal disciple pointed him out or even told that he was there; it only says that he talked with her. Later we see that they say his speech gives him away. After talking with the loyal disciple, the damsel was probably able to recognize similar speech patterns in Peter.

.John 18:18 | (Mar.15.2012) servants and officers stood out there together. And Peter stood with them, and warmed himself. Um, why was Peter just chilling with them (literally & figuratively) as if he was one of them. Peter, man, you're a stranger. Nobody knows who you are. All of these people work together, but nobody knows who you are. What are you doing here?! Nobody wants to be outside in the cold. They're out there because they have to be and you're just hanging out like this is where the party's at or something. This ain't Studio 54! What are you supposed to be acting like, the new guy or something? Really? What do you do? No, seriously, who do you work for? And why are you dressed like that? Dude, you're dressed like Jesus!

.John 18:26 | (Mar.15.2012) Peter! You cut off the ear of the high priest's kinsman? You couldn't have cut off anybody else's ear? The high priests family member? You really know how to pick them, don't you?

.John 18:27 | (Mar.15.2012) Yeah, you better deny it. You cut that man's ear off, and now it's payback time! I know it's gotta be pretty scary, and I feel bad for you brother, but I don't know what to tell you. You probably would have been safer going inside with Jesus and the loyal disciple. Some people might call you a punk, but at least you were brave enough to make the risky move of coming to see what was happening.

.John 18:28 | (Mar.15.2012) "they themselves went not into the judgment hall, lest they should be defiled; but that they might eat the passover." Yeah, they really had no idea what they were doing. Sorry to break the news to you, but um, you all are already well defiled. You might want to think about skipping that passover meal. We'll see you in 1 Corinthians 11:27.

.John 18:30 | (Mar.15.2012) still they lied

.John 18:31 | (Mar.15.2012) Is this true that they couldn't put any man to death? But what about 19:7?

.John 18:38 | (Mar.15.2012) I like how Pilate adds "at all" at the end when saying "I find in him no fault at all."

.John 18:40 | (Mar.15.2012) This calls Barabbas a robber, but Luke 23:19 says Barabbas was cast into prison for being a murderer. Well, it's not impossible that a murderer is also a robber. In fact it's quite likely. But I won't go overboard and say that all robbers are murderers, but apparently Barabbas was both. Sounds like his murdering is what got him caught though.

Day 100: 1 Samuel 15-16; John 19

.1 Samuel 15:3 | (Mar.16.2012) I'm sure there are people (people among us today) who have a problem with God's command here. They say "How can He be a loving God if He told them to kill the women, infants, sucklings and animals? (nevermind the men)" Then they say "That's not a God I want to serve." They are non-believers. First, they disregard the fact that this was something that God told them to do in a specific instance, for a specific reason. He's God, He knows all. He's able to take all things into account, and He's able to make that call if absolutely necessary. The problem is that they think He's not God. They think He's not wise or knowledgeable to make that decision. They think He's like them, and that He's guessing that this is the best course of action, or that He's lazy and He just says "kill them all, I don't feel like judging each one of them." But that's not what God is doing. And really, they don't believe that God even said this. Some of them don't believe there is a God. They think that some people made up this story in the Bible to control other people, and that those people shouldn't have written it this way. They say it is cruel for the writers to make God say such a thing. They don't believe that God actually said it. And therefore, they really don't believe that all of this even happened anyway. They think it's all a man-made story. If they truly believed He was God over the universe and universes (if there are other universes), then they would believe that His knowledge and wisdom is sufficient enough to make such a decision correctly and be able to find the means in all of His mightiness to even be able to effectively communicate His instructions to his creation. Furthermore, they would know that there is no other God over the universe, so they can't just choose to go follow another god of their choosing. "To each his own" they say. They are non-believers. And they don't really care that the Bible says that God ordered this back then; what they really care about is that they fear that people today will claim that God told them to do the same thing. Their reaction is out of fear for their own safety. There are a lot of so called "religions" and cults that man has created and become successful in getting people to follow. And so many people now have become skeptics (often unknowingly) and they think that this God the Bible speaks of is just another one of those man-made fairytales, and they fail to identify His authenticity. They don't even put forth the sufficient effort to verify the authenticity of His Word, because in their minds it already doesn't make sense. "If there was a creator and Master of the universe, then He wouldn't do that," they reason. "Why would God say that?" they doubt.

.1 Samuel 15:9 | (Mar.16.2012) They spared an awful lot, when they weren't supposed to spare anything at all, and it was because they were being selfish and greedy. By sparing anything at all, they were disobeying God, because God told them in verse 3, "Now go and smite Amalek, and utterly destroy all that they have, and spare them not; but slay both man and woman, infant and suckling, ox and sheep, camel and ass." They even spared Agag, the king of the Amelekites. Of all people, places and things, I would have thought they would have at least taken out the leader of it all. We know they didn't spare these things because of compassion because it says they spared the best of those things, which tells us they were thinking of themselves and what they wanted, not being compassionate. Yes, it says in verse 16 they saved them to sacrifice unto the Lord God, but if you want to make God happy, then just do what He says. Go sacrifice your own animals and whatever, that you already have. Now is the perfect time to learn the lesson (the hard way), that to obey God is better than sacrifice, as is plainly said a few verses ahead in 22. Okay, I'll back up and say perhaps they did it for some other reason than selfishness and greed, perhaps. But as verse 19 points out, greed or no greed, what they did was still evil. I can't say what to call it at the moment, but I can't call it right. The same goes for us. We can't just do what we want to do and then offer it to God to try to make it right. I don't care how much you think doing it shows your faith or dedication to God, or that you sacrificed something, if God said to do otherwise, then you're wrong; and I'd be wrong if I did the same thing. One example for us that's close to this one is tithes. I'm not addressing at the moment whether or not it's even meant for Christians to do, but if God says to tithe sheep, grains, or whatever comes forth from the field, and He is clear that tithes are not money, then it is disobedient to try to tithe money to Him. It's disobedient, plain and simple, and can't be justified. People say, "but when I pay a tithe of my money, it is an act of faith to God" or that they are willing to sacrifice it for God. Not only are tithes never referred to as money, it is clear in the Bible that a tithe cannot be money. But if you really had faith in God, you would do what He says, no matter how inconvenient. If He says, give me your tenth sheep, then you can't just substitute sheep with dollar bills. He didn't ask you for a dollar. And I'm not really focusing on tithes here, I'm just using it as an example. If God says do x, and you do z instead, then it is disobedience, no matter how much of a sacrifice it is to do z. What would please God is if you did x like He asked you to and don't try to overthrow His decision because you think you know better. These people here in this chapter are offering God something that He doesn't even want.

.John 19:28 | (Apr.13.2012) Last night while I was trying to go to sleep, my senses committee got together and decided that my nose should be shut down for the night. Maybe there was too much pollen in the room for their comfort, I don't know. It doesn't matter. What matters is that as I slept, I had to breathe through my mouth the whole time. Well, after an hour or two of that, you wake up and your tongue is dry and dusty, along with the rest of your mouth, and possibly even your lungs. So you'd better drink some water, or else you're going to be in a lot of pain. In fact, it already hurts a bit to swallow, because things aren't moving around in your mouth like they should anymore. So here in verse 28, Jesus says "I thirst." And I'm sure he did. Yes, it says He said it so that the scripture might be fulfilled, but then again Jesus wasn't a liar either. He really was thirsty. I'd imagine that being beaten beyond recognition, as He was, would almost surely come with a broken nose. And I'm not sure how well someone is going to breathe through a broken nose. I wouldn't be surprised at all to find out that Jesus had to breathe through His mouth the whole time. I'd imagine also that the wind was a tad breezier up there where Jesus was hanging too, making it all the more worse. Tonight when you go to sleep, try plugging up your nose for a few hours while you sleep to see how it feels. I think what Jesus experienced will become a little more real to you and you'll gain a little more appreciation for what He did for you on the cross.

Day 101: 1 Samuel 17-18; John 20

.John 20:20 | (Jan.8.2012) after His resurrection, it says here in the Bible that Jesus shows His hands pierced, not His wrists. However, there are people who say that it's not his Hands that were pierced, but His wrists instead, claiming that his wrists could better support his weight. Since there are some people who regard what modern man says more than what the Bible says, let's take a look at some pictures of the hand and wrist and see whether such a claim is even plausible. R. L. Serralta Nogués of bibleserralta.com has done an interesting Biblical study on this, including detailed pictures and scripture, so let's take a look at his article and see what he discovered: www.bibleserralta.com/JesusNailedByHisHands.html

Day 102: 1 Samuel 19-21; John 21

.1 Samuel 19:1 | (Mar.17.2012) Seeing the Philistines, Saul should have known better.

.1 Samuel 19:6 | (Mar.17.2012) "Saul sware" (Old Testament swearing)

.1 Samuel 19:10 | (Mar.17.2012) Well, Saul did swear that David shall not be slain. So Saul doesn't have a right to be too mad that he missed. We do have to remember that he is under the influence of an evil spirit here though. I wonder how many javelin holes were in the walls of his house.

.1 Samuel 19:17 | (Mar.17.2012) Saul refers to David as his enemy.

.1 Samuel 19:21 | (Mar.17.2012) Saul wanted messengers that didn't prophesy.

.1 Samuel 19:23-24 | (Mar.17.2012) This is the third major change he's been through. Before, in verse 9, it was an evil spirit, now the Spirit of God is upon him. A miracle.

.1 Samuel 20:6 | (Mar.17.2012) "a yearly sacrifice" (Hebrews 10:3). Is David lying here? He does clearly lie later in 21:2.

.1 Samuel 20:8 | (Mar.17.2012) "a covenant" (verse 4)

.1 Samuel 20:33 | (Mar.17.2012) Don't talk back. Man! You might have gotten a belt or a switch if you talked back to your parents around where I live, but a javelin? A javelin? What is this, the Olympics? If I'mma get stabbed just for talking back, at least have the decency to walk over and stab me face to face. I don't want to get stabbed at all, but I'm just saying, if there's no way around it... if I absolutely have to get stabbed, I just think a javelin is a little bit disrespectful. I'm glad he missed.

.1 Samuel 21:1 | (Mar.17.2012) (highlighted)

.1 Samuel 21:2 | (Mar.17.2012) David lied

.1 Samuel 21:6 | (Mar.17.2012) Didn't Jesus mention this somewhere?

.1 Samuel 21:7 | (Mar.17.2012) 22:18,22

.1 Samuel 21:10 | (Mar.17.2012) David in fear

.1 Samuel 21:11 | (Mar.17.2012) They sung this in 18:7.

.1 Samuel 21:12 | (Mar.17.2012) David in fear

.1 Samuel 21:13 | (Mar.17.2012) (highlighted)

Day 103: 1 Samuel 22-24; Acts 1

.1 Samuel 22:16 | (Mar.19.2012) I can imagine him responding defensively saying "but, but..." and being told "no buts" before he can utter his excuse.

.1 Samuel 22:17 | (Mar.19.2012) "And the king said unto the footmen that stood about him, 'Turn and slay the priests of the Lord'... But the servants of the king would not put forth their hand to fall upon the priests of the Lord." As we see here, regardless of hire, or the fact of them being dedicated soldiers, there's always a choice. There are many soldiers these days who subscribe to the idea that they are have zero responsibility for the lives they take; when they are called upon, they are mere weapons, void of the ability to choose not to take a life. It is not their choice to decide, they say, and we readily accept this. But as we see here, there is always a choice. For example, if a soldier was sent by his commanding official to his parents house to kill his own mother, he most assuredly would not do it, because he does indeed have a choice. There may be consequences, but he has a choice. Further illustrating this idea of choice, is Luke 3:14 where John the Baptist tells the soldiers to "Do violence to no man, neither accuse any falsely; and be content with your wages." I'm not saying I think a soldier must go and judge the worthiness of every target before carrying out any orders, but in the case where a soldier knows that the order being given is wrong, the soldier is not free of responsibility for his or her actions just because they were given orders.

.1 Samuel 22:18 | (Mar.19.2012) "Doeg the Edomite turned"

.1 Samuel 22:21 | (Mar.19.2012) (highlighted)

.1 Samuel 22:22 | (Mar.19.2012) 21:7

.1 Samuel 23:2 | (Mar.19.2012) for the 4th time

.1 Samuel 23:9 | (Mar.19.2012) "Saul secretly practiced mischief against him"

.1 Samuel 23:17 | (Mar.19.2012) Jonathan tells David to "fear not." Earlier, in 21:10,12 we see that David was clearly in fear of Saul, so these words are much needed.

.1 Samuel 23:26 | (Mar.19.2012) David still in fear

.1 Samuel 24:3 | (Mar.19.2012) "David and his men remained in the sides of the cave."

.1 Samuel 24:4 | (Mar.19.2012) Notice that God gives David a choice. Sometimes God gives us a choice. He's not just a dictator in the sky. He gave us a working conscience, and allowed us to feel a range of emotions, along with the ability to think, reason, feel, and respond. We are not called to always make objective decisions, and we are not called to always make subjective decisions. For today's relevant song, listen to "Robot" by Trip Lee.

.1 Samuel 24:4-5 | (Mar.19.2012) Amazing loyalty!

.1 Samuel 24:9-10 | (Mar.19.2012) (highlighted)

.1 Samuel 24:12-13 | (Mar.19.2012) Romans 12:19-21 about vengeance

.1 Samuel 24:17 | (Mar.19.2012) Romans 12:19-21 speaks about overcoming evil with good, and this here is a prime example of it. Saul was not evil to the core; He was disobedient, blind, and fearful. Likewise, many of our enemies that we think are evil to the core, are probably not. There are many people who may have advised to just kill Saul, thinking there was no hope for him, and that his heart was completely rotten, but I'm thankful that David decided to apply this principle of overcoming evil with good so we can see how it works. We would also be wise to recognize that the Lord did help David to do this. He wasn't left to do it on his own. As in Psalm 46:1, we can also say "God is our refuge and strength, a very present help in trouble."

.1 Samuel 24:20 | (Mar.19.2012) The rise of King David

.Acts 1:2 | (Mar.19.2012) The Holy Ghost is not just a feeling, and not just shouting and speaking tongues. It says here that Jesus "through the Holy Ghost had given commandments unto the apostles whom he had chosen:"

.Acts 1:3 | (Mar.19.2012) Jesus has already been proven. Yes, proven "by many infallible proofs," and here we have the written testimonies of those who witnessed it in person. What more do people want? For Jesus to come back and prove Himself to every hardheaded generation, every year, then every month, and every other day, traveling around the countries, catering the Truth to people who are too busy to leave the comforts of their own little neighborhoods, houses and couches to seek the truth. Where would it end? He'd end up having to personally walk around door to door proving Himself to be the Messiah. Then He'd find Himself returning back to the same houses several times because the people were too busy at the moment to hear Him, or wouldn't open the door because they didn't yet believe in Him. Please! The eyes of man are never satisfied. Jesus has already proven Himself. Whoever doesn't want to take a moment of time to see that Truth, doesn't have to, but it's not because we haven't all been presented sufficient evidence. People ought to say as they said at the end of Acts 4:16 "we cannot deny it."

.Acts 1:7 | (Mar.19.2012) "It is not for you to know the times or the seasons, which the Father hath put in His own power." This is with many things.

.Acts 1:8 | (Mar.19.2012) "But ye shall receive power, after that the Holy Ghost is come upon you:" Notice that it is stated in present tense, as when God says "I am." These are Jesus' Last Words as He physically walked the earth. He has already died and risen, and is about to ascend to Heaven. And what does He tell them? Does He tell them to be Jehovah's Witnesses? No, He tells them to be His witnesses. They are Christ's witnesses. Christ Himself was/is a witness of Jehovah. We see how many times He bare witness of not only Himself, but also of His Father, and the Holy Spirit. He never ceased making mention of Them, as we are to never cease making mention of Him. We notice also that it says "and unto the uttermost part of the earth." These witnesses hadn't access to America yet, but we do. Peter puts this in action in 3:15-16. He is being a doer, not just a hearer (James 1:22).

.Acts 1:10 | (Mar.19.2012) I wonder if these are the two angels from Genesis 19:1 or Luke 24:4. It definitely sounds like the two in Luke 24:4. But why would these angels be here? If you remember from Genesis 18:21, God says "I will go down now, and see..." and in Genesis 19:1 the two angels went down to see. If you remember from times like when God used the angel in the burning bush to speak to Moses and other times (I won't name them all), we see that God used the angels as His Ambassadors. Those angels standing there is pretty much like God standing there Himself. So why is God showing up at all of the big events? 1 John 5:8 says "there's three that bear witness in earth, the spirit, and the water, and the blood: and these three agree in one." It's great that Jesus' disciples are there to witness His ascension, but they are not His only witnesses. Not only was God there in Spirit, He was standing right there physically vicariously through the angels to witness the whole thing. Not only did He witness the event, He witnessed the eye witnesses witnessing it. Imagine being in court, and trying to tell the judge that you think the eye witness is lying about what they saw, or that they saw it wrong, or perhaps that they weren't really even there, and then the judge tells you "I was there at the event too, and I saw these witnesses there, and they are telling the truth." Okay, so in our courts today, they may say it is a conflict of interest to judge a case He was present at, but let's bring it closer to home to you and say he had recorded video footage of the whole thing. It appears that's essentially what's going on here. If a mere man can record crystal clear 3D video and surround sound, then I'd imagine God will at least be able to present better. Oh yeah, those angels probably recorded the whole experience: all of everything going on there, including sight, sound, smells, and all of the thoughts, feelings, and emotions of everyone there. On top of that, these angels were seen standing there at the scene of the incident. And God's evidence is tamper-proof, because wherever He has it stored, one thing's for sure, man has no access to it. How do we really know He has such evidence and could show it if needed? From my understanding, that's where prophecy comes in. Yes, not only can God have records of everything, He's not bound by time. He doesn't have to set His recorder to record at a certain time. He's ever present. The things that, in our perspective, are in the future, He's already looking at it. At times, He's shown it to earthly man, and told man to tell other people what He saw. That's why true prophecy can never turn out to be wrong, because the thing is already done before it is even uttered.

.Acts 1:11 | (Mar.19.2012) For people still wondering how Jesus will come back. He'll come back in the same manner He left, it says here. For further description, read Matthew 24:27.

.Acts 1:12 | (Mar.19.2012) I'm not sure why it says "a sabbath days" journey instead of just "a day's journey." Perhaps, since people didn't work on the sabbath, they had the full day to travel. Perhaps it was a common day to travel.

.Acts 1:13 | (Mar.19.2012) These are the eleven apostles; Judas Iscariot, of course, wasn't with them, because it was after the betrayal. They are listed in Matthew 10:2-4, and Luke 6:13-16. Jesus Christ is an Apostle also, Paul tells us in Hebrews 3:1, but Jesus is not considered one of the twelve, as numbered, although they are all together. Jesus is not just an apostle, but The Apostle and High Priest of our profession, as the apostle Paul says. You'll also notice in the Bible, that the word "apostle" when referring to the twelve is always lowercase, and when referring to Jesus is capitalized. That's how it is in my Bible at least.
1) Peter
2) James
3) John
4) Andrew
5) Philip
6) Thomas
7) Bartholomew
8) Matthew
9) James
10) Simon Zelotes
11) Judas the brother of James (not Judas Iscariot, the traitor)

.Acts 1:15 | (Mar.19.2012) Was Peter led by the Spirit to stand up and begin this? I can't say. It's possible that he wasn't. Perhaps he was just doing what they thought seemed to be the right thing to do.

.Acts 1:16 | (Mar.19.2012) Peter points out "this scripture must needs have been fulfilled, which the Holy Ghost by the mouth of David spake before concerning Judas, which was guide to them that took Jesus."

.Acts 1:18 | (Mar.19.2012) Matthew 27:6 is when he "purchased a field with the reward of iniquity" as it says here.

.Acts 1:19 | (Mar.19.2012) highlighted "A-celda-ma, that is to say, The field of blood."

.Acts 1:20 | (Mar.19.2012) "it is written in the book of Psalms, Let his habitation be desolate," This is referring to Psalms 69:25, except it says "their habitation" and "let none dwell in their tents" instead of "his habitation" and "let no man dwell therein."

.Acts 1:20 | (Mar.19.2012) It's said that the term "bishoprick" means "office." I don't recall seeing in Psalms where it said anything about another taking his bishoprick or office, however. It may be mentioned somewhere else. I'm wondering if it was supposed to be in reference to Paul.

.Acts 1:23 | (Mar.28.2012) Colossians 4:11 also refers to a Jesus, who was called Justus. It sounds like it's referring to a different Jesus, not Jesus Christ. This may be the same Justus who Paul encounters in Acts 18:7

.Acts 1:24 | (Mar.19.2012) As Oliver B. Green questions, I also ask, would the Holy Spirit have had two men be voted on? I thought also that who He calls, He calls. In addition, I would have also thought that Jesus, sometime during his forty days after His resurrection would have appointed one of these other guys as an apostle if that's what He wanted, and if He felt that was needed. But the risen Jesus doesn't appear to have anything to say about their elevenness (new word alert). And if it was that much of an urgent concern to the eleven, I wonder, why didn't they ask Him while He was there?
I'd like to share an excerpt from page 39 of Commentary on Galatians by Oliver B. Green:

Where did Peter get his authority to hold a meeting and elect a twelfth apostle? Where did he get his authority to ordain an apostle? Face it, beloved: Peter (like many of us, even ministers) did what he did in the energy of the flesh. Peter was not willing to wait for the Spirit to lead; he went ahead of the Spirit:

"And they appointed two, Joseph called Barsabas, who was surnamed Justus, and Matthias" (Acts 1:23).

"Can you imagine the Holy Ghost setting up two men to be voted upon? If God Almighty calls a man, He appoints a man--not two men to be voted upon by other men. It is true that they prayed for the Lord to show them which one was to be chosen--but their prayer was wasted and empty, because they asked God to pick one of the candidates they had chosen. It seems they would have prayed for God to show them which one of the one hundred and twenty should be appointed to fill the place left by Judas. Why did they select only two, when there were one hundred and twenty of them waiting in the upper room for the coming of the Holy Spirit. They prayed, "Show which of these two . . . ," They did not get an answer; therefore they were forced to cast lots--or to vote--for the one to fill the place left vacant by the death of Judas. "And they gave forth their lots; and the lot fell upon Matthias; and he was numbered with the eleven apostles" (Acts 1:26).

Jesus prayed all night before choosing the twelve, but they just did a drawing. From what we're told, they only prayed after they chose candidates, and according to Oliver Greene's studies, Matthias is never again mentioned in the rest of the Bible. In Galatians 1:1, God later chose Paul as an apostle, possibly ignoring the vote of Matthias. We know from the Old Testament story of David, that who man may think is the best choice is not always who God may decide is the best choice. David was the last child they thought would be chosen, and they didn't even present him initially. Look at what happens in Acts 13:2, as they ministered to the Lord and fasted. The Holy Ghost said, "Separate me Barnabas and Saul for the work whereunto I have called them." The Holy Ghost is fully able to communicate this type of thing when needed. It is true that at times Peter did get ahead of himself, but I do not mean to be too hard on him. He was a great apostle, and man of faith, who did an excellent job in laying a foundation for us. He learned some lessons the hard way, but he learned, adjusted, and kept on going forward. We don't hear about him beating himself up and quitting, even though he had some moments that must have been pretty embarrassing. But that's what happens sometimes when you do things like take initiative, step out of your comfort zone, walk out on faith (even out on the stormy waters), and try things you've never done before.

Day 104: 1 Samuel 25-26; Acts 2

.1 Samuel 25:1 | (Mar.20.2012) "buried him in his house" - I didn't know people got buried in their house, not on purpose, at least.

.1 Samuel 25:17 | (Mar.20.2012) What in the world is this Belial? Belial is not a man, but whenever someone is evil, it seems, they say he is a son of Belial, even if that person is another man's son. It sounds like it may be another name for Satan or Baal. The name is used again in 2 Corinthians 6:15, where Paul asks, "And what concord hath Christ with Belial? or what part hath he that believeth with an infidel?

.1 Samuel 25:24 | (Mar.20.2012) the word "audience" here is said to mean "presence"

.1 Samuel 25:34 | (Mar.20.2012) "surely there had not been left unto Nabal by the morning light any that pisseth against the wall." Before reading this, I had always thought the word "piss" was a vulgar word, even when used in this context (don't know why I thought that). In this case, the writer showcases his discovery of a new way to say "males." A pretty useful feature for soldiers in battle, huh? Unfortunately it just wasn't enough for these guys.

.1 Samuel 25:36 | (Mar.20.2012) "he was very drunken"

.1 Samuel 25:38 | (Mar.20.2012) 25:39 | Nabal died because the Lord returned the wickedness of Nabal upon his own head. This is what's called reaping what you sow.

.1 Samuel 25:39 | (Mar.20.2012) 25:38 | The Lord smote Nabal and he died.

.1 Samuel 25:20 | (Mar.20.2012) self-deprecating

Day 105: 1 Samuel 27-29; Acts 3

.1 Samuel 27:3 | (Mar.21.2012) It's interesting to note that at the end of this verse, she's still called "Nabal's wife," although Nabal is dead and she's married to David now (25:38,42).

.1 Samuel 27:10 | (Mar.21.2012) Looking at verse 8, we see that David lies again here.

.1 Samuel 28:6 | (Mar.21.2012) James 4:3-6. "Urim?" Being that "Urim" is capitalized in my Bible, I'm guessing that's a person. I don't know, I have to look into this one a bit more.

.1 Samuel 28:9 | (Mar.21.2012) They are weak and fearful.

.1 Samuel 28:10 | (Mar.21.2012) "Saul sware to her by the Lord." (Old Testament swearing). In the New Testament, Jesus says not to swear (Matthew 5:34).

.1 Samuel 28:12 | (Mar.21.2012) She was not a fake.

.1 Samuel 28:16 | (Mar.21.2012) Apparently, the witch at En-dor really did bring Samuel up. Saul died because he did this; a high price to pay (1 Chronicles 10:13).

.1 Samuel 28:19 | (Mar.21.2012) Be with Samuel where? If the Lord departed from Saul and has become his enemy like Samuel says in verse 16?

.1 Samuel 28:21 | (Mar.21.2012) Notice she didn't say "I have put my life in thy hand."

.Acts 3:16 | (Mar.21.2012) "his name through faith in his name" | This means doing it in the name of Jesus Christ of Nazareth, and believing in the power of His name. In this case (verse 6), he actually says His name when healing the man. I believe there were other cases where people healed in Jesus' name without saying "in Jesus name," but it was important here for it to be said, so that it is made evident and not confused that this was done through Jesus and not through any other power, or by faith in any other name.

.Acts 3:17-19 | (Mar.21.2012) "I wot that through ignorance ye did it..." The word "wot" here means "know." The lesson learned here is to repent when you find out that you have done wrong in ignorance (when you didn't know better).

.Acts 3:19 | (Mar.21.2012) "Repent... that your sins may be blotted out, when the times of refreshing shall come from the presence of the Lord;" Will our sins only be blotted out at this time?

.Acts 3:21 | (Mar.21.2012) "the times of restitution of all things" - All things shall be restored.

Day 106: 1 Samuel 30-31; Acts 4

.1 Samuel 30:6 | (Mar.22.2012) When it seemed like everyone turned against him, "David encouraged himself in the Lord his God." Where's the DJ at? I want to send in a song request for "Encourage Yourself" by Donald Lawrence & The Tri-City Singers. Singing "Sometimes you have to encourage yourself..."

.1 Samuel 30:8 | (Mar.22.2012) Wow! Although his wives were taken captive by them, he still enquired of the Lord, whether or not he should pursue after the troop. The Lord could have had another strategy for them.

.1 Samuel 30:11 | (Mar.22.2012) It sounds like it was David who was given the food, not the Egyptian.

.1 Samuel 30:12 | (Mar.22.2012) No food and water for three days while traveling?! Thank God for cake!

.1 Samuel 30:13 | (Mar.22.2012) People being sick is rarely mentioned in the Bible, except extremes.

.1 Samuel 30:22 | (Mar.22.2012) 25:17 | Again, who in the world is this Belial? Hey, just because David wasn't wicked doesn't mean that his men weren't.

.1 Samuel 31:5 | (Mar.22.2012) Suicides. But according to the testimony in 2 Samuel 1:6-9, Saul hadn't really died (like Romeo & Juliet) or either that guy lied to David in 2 Samuel 1:6-9.

.Acts 4:8 | (Mar.22.2012) "Peter, filled with the Holy Ghost, said..."

.Acts 4:9 | (Mar.22.2012) "the impotent man" - They talks about it all in the Bible, don't they?

.Acts 4:10 | (Mar.22.2012) 3:6,16 | "by the name of Jesus Christ of Nazareth... doth this man stand here before you whole."

.Acts 4:12 | (Mar.22.2012) "Neither is there salvation in any other: for there is none other name under heaven given among men, whereby we must be saved." | Just in case someone claims Jesus wasn't clear enough in John 14:6 when He said, "I am The Way, The Truth, and The Life: No man cometh unto the Father, but by me."

.Acts 4:13 | (Mar.22.2012) "...perceived that they were unlearned and ignorant men..." Peter and John weren't seen as scholars, but unschooled. I wonder how many of us today would consider them not good enough to present the Gospel, or hold the positions they held. How often would they get turned down now, being told that they are not qualified to even stand next to some of today's well schooled Christian scholars?

.Acts 4:16 | (Mar.22.2012) "...we cannot deny it." | They had no way around Jesus' many infallible proofs (Acts 1:3), and these proofs kept on coming even after Jesus left the earth. They knew they were wrong, but they still wanted to try to block God.

.Acts 4:20 | (Mar.22.2012) Because they weren't scholars, that's all they knew.

.Acts 4:21 | (Mar.22.2012) "finding nothing how they might punish them, because of the people: for all men glorified God for that which was done."

.Acts 4:22 | (Mar.22.2012) So they healed an impotent man who was above 40 years old. It's mentioned here as if it's well known that once men were above 40, then they might have this problem. Well there's one thing that hasn't changed over the last 2000 years. Well now there are some popular drugs that may help, but no drugs then. Everybody knew it was all Jesus. I'm surprised this miracle isn't more talked about today.

.Acts 4:25-26 | (Mar.22.2012) I can't tell where David's quote stopped, but it's somewhere around the end of verse 26.

Day 107: 2 Samuel 1-2; Acts 5

.2 Samuel 1:6 | (Mar.23.2012) 1 Samuel 31:4 calls it a sword, but it's called a spear here.

.2 Samuel 1:18 | (Mar.23.2012) "use of the bow" is seen in verse 22. 1 Samuel 20:35-36 speaks of Jonathan using the bow (bow and arrows). This "book of Jasher" that's mentioned here is also mentioned in the book of Joshua 10:13.

.2 Samuel 1:18 | (Mar.23.2012) What? Saul? Lovely and pleasant? In today's slang, we would ask "has Saul been Nerfed?"

.2 Samuel 2:5-6 | (Mar.23.2012) 1 Samuel 16:1

.2 Samuel 2:23 | (Mar.23.2012) Moment of silence

.Acts 5:1 | (Mar.23.2012) (highlighted)

.Acts 5:4 | (Mar.23.2012) "thou has not lied unto men, but unto God." It wasn't so bad that he kept some, but that he lied about it. In verse 3, Peter says he lied to the Holy Ghost.

.Acts 5:5 | (Mar.23.2012) "Ananias hearing these words fell down, and gave up the ghost:"

.Acts 5:8 | (Mar.23.2012) "Peter answered"

.Acts 5:8-10 | (Mar.23.2012) They died for lying. That's why she was asked first, here. "Then fell she down straightway at his feet, and yielded up the ghost:"

.Acts 5:12 | (Mar.23.2012) "Solomon's porch?"

.Acts 5:13 | (Mar.23.2012) "the people magnified them"

.Acts 5:14 | (Mar.23.2012) "believers were the more added to the Lord,"

.Acts 5:24 | (Mar.23.2012) "when the high priest and the captain of the temple and the chief priests heard these things, they doubted" - They doubted so it wouldn't become known among them as a miracle. If it is known as a miracle by them, then it is known to be just and right.

.Acts 5:26 | (Mar.23.2012) "they feared the people, lest they should have been stoned."

.Acts 5:28 | (Mar.23.2012) "ye have filled Jerusalem with your doctrine," - Way to go, guys!

.Acts 5:29 | (Mar.23.2012) Telling them this for the 2nd time.

.Acts 5:31 | (Mar.23.2012) God exalted Jesus to be "a Prince" - In Acts 3:15, He's called the Prince of life.

.Acts 5:34 | (Mar.23.2012) "Gamaliel, a doctor of the law" -The lawyer

.Acts 5:39 | (Mar.23.2012) "haply" means "perhaps." (Mar.15.2014) One definition of perhaps is that it means "by chance," which is essentially the same that would define the term "by happenstance." So it would appear that the word perhaps could be short for "per happenstance" or in Latin "por" happenstance (I believe "por" and "per" both mean "by"; by means of). Or perhaps I'm wrong. Or perhaps I'm not. According to Wiktionary, the Latin phrase 'per via de' (by way of) is the same as the Portuguese 'por via de.'

.Acts 5:41 | (Mar.23.2012) "they departed from the presence of the council, rejoicing that they were counted worthy to suffer shame for his name."

.Acts 5:42 | (Mar.23.2012) "they ceased not to teach and preach Jesus Christ." - I love it. They still taught. When man's law is clearly against God, we see here that God must not bow down and be subjected to man's law, even when it is put forth by so called "authorities." We can't just blindly follow any and everything, assuming that God is for any and every person in a leadership position, even when they are supposedly holding a spiritual office and said to represent God when clearly they don't. The apostles were not the ones here abusing the system and being disobedient.

Day 108: 2 Samuel 3-5; Acts 6

.2 Samuel 3:1 | (Mar.24.2012) Seems natural, not like God's hand is causing it, but it is God's hand. Often God works in ways that seem like things are occurring naturally, like the time when God said He'd help Joshua and the children of Israel overthrow the other wicked nations, but He would drive them out little by little (Exodus 23:30), instead of some big grand event. He even said He'd use things as seemingly petty as driving them out with bees, until one group grew weaker and weaker, and the other stronger and stronger (Ex 23:30).

.2 Samuel 3:15 | (Mar.24.2012) She got remarried.

.2 Samuel 4:4 | (Mar.24.2012) We're told more about Jonathan's son, Mephibosheth in 2 Samuel 9:6.

.2 Samuel 5:4 | (Mar.24.2012) "David was thirty years old when he began to reign" - Another young leader. The Bible has plenty of them aside from Jesus.

.2 Samuel 5:8 | (Mar.24.2012) This would include Mephibosheth, but Mephibosheth will find his way to the King's table. 2 Samuel 4:4; 9:6.

.Acts 6:2 | (Mar.24.2012) "It is not reason that we should leave the word of God, and serve tables." I would love it if many of our preachers all across the land would grab hold of this scripture right here, and take some duties off of their shoulders so they can spend more time studying and meditating upon the Word of God.

.Acts 6:3 | (Mar.24.2012) (highlighted)

.Acts 6:11 | (Mar.24.2012) "Then they suborned men..." This means they bribed them, or convinced them to commit a crime or sin. In this case, they got them to tell lies (false witnesses).

.Acts 6:15 | (Mar.24.2012) highlighted "the face of an angel." Look who this is that you all are telling lies on? How evil does man's heart get? These are not just people who doubt who Jesus is. They know who He is and that He is innocent, but they are so determined to take Him down that they don't care. Their hearts are like Lucifer, who wanted to overthrow God if possible.

Day 109: 2 Samuel 6-8; Acts 7

.Acts 7:6 | see Exodus 12:40-41

.Acts 7:7 | see Exodus 5:1-3 and Exodus 12:31

.Acts 7:23 | Moses' age (40) is told.

.Acts 7:29 | Moses possibly left his children behind.

.Acts 7:30 | He is 40 in verse 23 and it may have been immediately after that he fled and was gone for 40 years until he saw the angel in the burning bush and God speaking from it. Yes, there was an angel in the bush, although I know many of us have forgotten that part and just picture a bush burning alone with a voice coming from it (or at least that's how the movie "The Prince of Egypt" portrayed it.) Read Exodus 3:2. It's clear there.

.Acts 7:34 | The voice coming from the angel and the bush is the voice of God, speaking as God, yet it was not physically (or visually) God but an angel there. God often went down among the people vicariously through angels this way. He did it with the people in Sodom and Gomorrah (Genesis 18:21 | Genesis 19:1) and He did it when He (through an angel) wrestled with Jacob through the night (Genesis 32:24-30; 33:10 | Hosea 12:4).

.Acts 7:38 | Moses was in the church in the wilderness. This "mount Sina" is Mount Sinai.

.Acts 7:48 | God is called "the most High." There are some these days, however, that use the term "Most High" as more of a general term when speaking of God possibly to someone that may not believe He's the same God they are speaking of. For example, a Muslim when speaking to a Christian may say "the most High" instead of saying "Allah" or "Jehovah" to establish some sort of common ground or common name so the conversation can proceed beyond any initial disagreement. This may serve well for the Bible believer quoting this particular scripture. It would bring the discussion back to the question though "who is this most high?" The immediate answer of course would be "whoever the most high is, He does not dwell in temples made with hands, so if your "God" is said to dwell in some handmade (or manmade) temple then your "God" is not the Most High." In Luke 17:21 Jesus even testifies that one does not need to go here or there, because "the Kingdom of God is within you" He tells His believers.

.Acts 7:52 | Jesus said this in Luke 11:46-48

.Acts 7:55 | 7:48

.Acts 7:57-58 | Stephen was stoned by Saul's (Paul's) people for speaking God's truth while he was full of the Holy Ghost (verse 55). This is the same Paul who later became one of God's apostles and wrote much of the New Testament.

.Acts 7:60 | This is essentially the same as Jesus said in Luke 23:34 when He was crucified, and is supposed to be the heart of the Christian vs. taking it as personal offense and injustice if one is done wrong for preaching the Truth of God. This is the ultimate act of loving your enemy. This may partially be the reason why Paul was later able to come to Christ and do the work he did, living the life he did.

Day 110: 2 Samuel 9-11; Acts 8

.2 Samuel 11:8-10 | David tried to make Uriah "lay" with his own wife so that it would appear that he got his own wife pregnant and would not know that it was David's baby, and that David had an affair with her (adultery).

.Acts 8:1 | Again, remember not to let the separation of chapters and verses break up your thinking or continuity in your reading. Act as if the end of chapter 7 and beginning of chapter 8 were not separated. This is speaking of Stephen's death.

.Acts 8:4 | This ties in with verse 1, which mentions the church being scattered, yet verse 1 says "except the apostles." This tells us that the other people of the church went preaching as well. This type of thing is also spoken of in Matthew 10:23 about how the gospel is preached in every place.

.Acts 8:16 | They were actually baptized specifically in the name of Jesus, not just "Father, Son, and Holy Ghost." This baptizing in the name of Jesus is also spoken of in Acts 19:5. Galatians 3:27, Romans 6:3, and 1 Corinthians 8:16 also provides a better understanding of how we are baptized into Christ.

.Acts 8:20 | In 2 Kings 5:16, Elisha also refused payment for the working of God, but in a different way.

.Acts 8:26 | This Gaza is perhaps the same place that was spoken of so frequently in our current news mentioning "the Gaza strip."

.Acts 8:28 | This prophet Esaias is the prophet Isaiah.

.Acts 8:32 | The scripture which he read was Isaiah 53:7

.Acts 8:35 | Therefore, Isaiah had prophesied of Jesus.

.Acts 8:36-38 | This may be a miracle that they come to water in the desert, enough to be baptized in. I'll also point out that he was baptized right then and there. He didn't make a show of it, complicate it, or postpone it until some later week or month as some of us have made our custom. He just baptized him and went his way.

.Acts 8:39-40 | He was found at Azotus. Not sure if there's any relevance to this at all, but azote is nitrogen, a gas. It's the former name of nitrogen. To azotize something means to nitrogenize it. This reference speaks of how the Spirit of the Lord "caught away Philip" sounding sort of like the Spirit in some way teleported him, if that would be the right term to use. Teleportation is defined by Wikipedia as the transfer of matter from one point to another, more or less instantaneously. I'm not going to look it up right now, but I believe I remember a few instances in the Bible where Jesus went from one place to another in a similar way without physically traveling there.

Day 111: 2 Samuel 12-13; Acts 9

.2 Samuel 12:23 | When things seem like they're not going our way, and we just can't understand why things are going the way they are going, we may often be tempted to stop fasting, praying, or even following God's Word when the outcome we are seeking is lost. But we still have to keep faith in God and say to our Father in Heaven like Jesus said, "nevertheless thy will be done."

.2 Samuel 12:24 | Solomon is conceived as David comforted her from her grief.

.Acts 9:1 | "breathing out threatenings and slaughter" This shows how comfortable he was doing this and how often he did it. It was just like breathing to him, like this is just what came out of his mouth whenever he exhaled without even thinking about it.

.Acts 9:4 | (Nov.15,2011) See Acts 26:28 notes about why Jesus says Saul is actually persecuting Him, when Saul persecutes the Lord's disciples.

.Acts 9:7 | Paul testifies in Acts 22:9 that they saw the light, but them seeing light does not mean they saw Him. It says in Acts 22:6 that it was a light that shined from Heaven. In 9:7 it also says "hearing a voice, but seeing no man." I'm assuming that he's saying that the men heard the voice, but as of now, I believe it's possible he could have been saying that Paul heard the voice but they didn't see a man. They could have been looking at him talking to someone but didn't see anyone there. Yet, it's possible that they did hear the voice. When I get a little more time on my hands, I'd like to look at this more thoroughly, in conjunction with Acts 22:9 which says they heard not the voice. I'm also going to look into whether it may have been possible that they heard some of what the Lord said, but not all, such as what he said in Acts 26:16-17.

.Acts 9:15-17 | Saul did some horrible things to Jesus' followers, so this could have been somewhat unbelievable. Ananias must have had great faith in the Lord, even to call Saul "Brother Saul" in verse 17.

.Acts 9:18-19 | He needed to be strengthened physically because he hadn't eaten or drank anything for three days (verse 9).

.Acts 9:20 | He immediately preached Christ in the synagogues. He didn't waste any time. It doesn't say he first went to school to learn the mechanics of preaching or gained any degrees and qualifications.

.Acts 9:20-43 | (I've run out of time for today, so prayerfully I'll be able to finish up commenting on chapter 9 tomorrow)

Day 112: 2 Samuel 14-15; Acts 10

.2 Samuel 14:25 | In other words, Absalom was absolutely flawless, well, physically at least.

.2 Samuel 14:26 | We can use Genesis 23:15 as a reference point for how much his hair weighed (200 shekels), compared to the 400 shekels of silver the land was worth in Genesis.

.Acts 10:3,30 | There may be something about the ninth hour being connected to prayer since it's mentioned both in Acts 10:3, and 10:30.

.Acts 10:5 | Simon was called Peter, not the same as Simon a tanner, who was a sorcerer.

.Acts 10:13-15 | Peter was "very hungry," verse 10 says. He was probably looking at animals and seeing steaks like in the cartoons. This that God tells him is evidence that God has not commanded everyone to be vegetarians or vegans, and that He did indeed tell him to kill and eat. I suppose this ties in to Ecclesiastes 3:3 which, among other things, says there is "a time to kill..."

.Acts 10:17 | Peter doubted in himself what the vision means. You may be able to relate, if the Lord has ever shown you a vision, dream, or spoke a word to you. At times, you may wonder, "is that just my imagination?"

.Acts 10:20-21 | As far as we know, Peter says this to them before they even ask for him. Peter believed the Holy Spirit.

.Acts 10:28 | Apparently Peter applies this to what he learned in v.15

.Acts 10:34 | Deuteronomy 1:17

.Acts 10:38 | Matthew 3:16

.Acts 10:39 | The cross probably looked more like a tree (which is what the wood came from) than some sanded and varnished wood, neatly fitted together to make a nice pretty cross. Probably had some splinters in it too.

.Acts 10:40-41 | Jesus was hidden from others after He rose from the dead. Luke 24:30-31.

.Acts 10:44-45 | Peter will later testify of this in Acts 15:8 at a very crucial time, when the salvation of the gentiles is challenged by certain men and Pharisees who were trying to force them to be bound to the law of Moses.

Day 113: 2 Samuel 16-18; Acts 11

.Acts 11:26 | This is where the name "Christian" originated. They followed Jesus and were so much about Him, that others distinctly called them by Christ's name. The life we live, and what we preach should remind people of Jesus Christ. In fact, we are the body of Christ. Also read around Isaiah 65:15, which says the Lord shall "call His servants by another name."

.Acts 11:30 | Barnabas and Saul returned in Acts 12:25

Day 114: 2 Samuel 19-20; Acts 12

.Acts 12:2 | He was killed unjustly by opposition against the church, as was Jesus. This is likely the cup Jesus is speaking of in Mark 10:35-39 and Matthew 20: 20-22. I say this because of what Jesus says in Matt 26:39 right before He's betrayed "O my Father, if it be possible, let this cup pass from me: nevertheless not as I will, but as thou wilt.":

.Acts 12:5-7,11 | I'd say this is an excellent example of how prayer influences outcomes. Judging by what Peter requested in Mark 10:35-39, he was probably also on his way to his death, but the Lord delivered him out of Herod's hand.

.Acts 12:9 | Here is another example of how we even sometimes doubt when we see great things, or miracles happen.

.Acts 12:17 | This was a sad moment although it's not pointed out in the verse. Peter says "go shew these things unto James," because he didn't know that James had already been killed.

.Acts 12:18 | "no small stir" means there was a big stir, a lot of noise being made about it.

.Acts 12:23 | Herod was killed by an angel because of his pride.

.Acts 12:25 | They had departed in Acts 11:30

Day 115: 2 Samuel 21-22; Acts 13

.Acts 13:9 | Saul (also called Paul) set his eyes on Elymas, the sorcerer mentioned in the verse before. I would say this Elymas the sorcerer is the same as Bar-jesus mentioned in verse 6. I say this because in verse 8, it says "for so is his name by interpretation," which would mean if you interpret it, it's Elymas. This Elymas also is seeking to turn away the deputy; the same deputy that it says "Bar-jesus was with in verses 6-7. This is why I say this is most likely the exact same person, but his name is just called different.

.Acts 13:15 | This reading of the law and the prophets was done every sabbath day (Acts 13:25).

.Acts 13:15-16 | Notice that Paul was apparently sitting among the people or at least took his time to speak when it was asked seemingly of the general congregation. Paul must not have been sitting in a prominent seat, and was not given an introduction or singled out and honored for his position.

.Acts 13:17-20 | Paul refers back to the time of Moses, Joshua, and Samuel. In verse 18, the word suffered is essentially just an old word for "allowed." In verse 19, Chanaan was spelled Canaan back in the Old Testament when translated from Hebrew to English.

.Acts 13:27 | 13:15

.Acts 13:33 | This was said in Psalm 2:7.

.Acts 13:46-49 | 11:19 bears record that the word was only preached to the Jews at first. So they had their chance and rejected God's word (although some did follow), but now they're being envious.

.Acts 13:50 | Devout and honorable doesn't necessarily mean righteous. In fact, if they were stirred up to speak against God's messengers and cause them to be persecuted and expelled, I would dare not say they were righteous. Devout, they may have been, and in the sight of their people they had honor, which is why they were able to influence the people so much, but this is not the same as righteousness.

Day 116: 2 Samuel 23-24; Acts 14

.2 Sam 24:24 | they did actually buy and sell then (using money), and did not only trade goods and services.

.Acts 14:1 | Some Jews believed here.

.Acts 14:2 | This is the greater problem when it comes to non-believers; in some way or another, they hinder others from believing to some extent. They may not do it purposely, but it's still done. No matter whether we want them to or not, our decisions do affect others, whether good or bad.

.Acts 14:9 | Paul observed him. The man needed to have faith to be healed.

.Acts 14:19 | Paul was stoned almost to death and drawn out of the city, in probably the same way it happened to Stephen in Acts 7:58. Paul (who was Saul, the unbeliever at the time) consented to his death (Acts 8:1). Interesting to note also that these Jews came looking for him. You don't have to go find trouble and tribulation to endure for Jesus. Trouble knows how to find you.

.Acts 14:20 | This is a bit astounding, I suppose, since he was left for dead and rose up and traveled into the city (I supposed the same city they had put him out of) and traveled to another city the next day. He's getting around pretty well for someone who was just left for dead, being stoned. Perhaps there was a miracle in this I hadn't noticed before.

.Acts 14:21-22 | Paul went back to preach where the Jews came to and thought they killed him. Those same Jews may have still been there. He risked his life again just to make sure the other people there (the believers) were continuing in the faith and confirming with them that "we must through much tribulation enter into the kingdom of God."

.Acts 14:25 | There is (or was) an airline in Italy called Alitalia, so I'm wondering if "Attalia" is actually "Italy," and "Perga" "Persia." I haven't looked into it yet at all, but it'd be interesting to know.

Day 117: 1 Kings 1-2; Acts 15

.1 Kings 1:4 | "the king knew her not" means that he hadn't "slept" with her.

.1 Kings 1:13 | Nathan the prophet comes and asks him the opposite of this in verse 24.

.1 Kings 1:15 | "the king was very old" is speaking about King David (see verses 13 and 17).

.1 Kings 1:24 | When I first read this, I thought that Nathan was trying to affirm Adonijah's kingship, but considering the rest of the text and that he was a prophet, we see that Nathan was telling on Adonijah, knowing that Adonijah was trying to take a position that wasn't his. (see v.32-34, 38-39)

.Acts 15:1-2 | Certain men forced a dispute over what they themselves taught. It's also interesting to note that those certain men, when Paul and Barnabas disputed them, determined that they should go and see what the apostles and elders had to say about the matter, when Paul himself was an apostle. "No small dissension and disputation" means that their disagreement and disputing wasn't a small one; it was a big issue.

.Acts 15:5 | The Pharisees were a sect.

.Acts 15:7-8 | Peter was Jewish, so when he says "even as he did unto us," that 'us' means the Jews. Peter corrected them and he was one of them. Peter witnessed the Holy Ghost falling on the gentiles in Acts 10:44-45.

.Acts 15:21 | This weekly sabbath reading of the scriptures of Moses was also mentioned in Acts 13:27, which Paul himself affirmed in Acts 13:16-20, although he was not in agreement that the gentiles should be bound by that which the Jews were bound to, which the Jews themselves weren't even able to keep.

Day 118: 1 Kings 3-5; Acts 16

.1 Kings 3:5 | (Mar.25.2012) All dreams are not just dreams. God can speak to us in our dreams. I've had these dreams, and then I've also had regular dreams. I don't know how similar my experiences may be with others in this area, but it's not too hard for me to tell the difference between a regular dream and one of these dreams where God shows us or tells us something. In short, they are a lot more clear and vivid, and make more sense than regular dreams, sometimes more sense than life when awake. It's still key to get to know God's (voice), because I don't think He's the only one that can talk to us in our sleep. One of my more well known poems, "Charity (The Infinitude of Love)" was told to me by God in a dream where He revealed what charity is. It was a poem, and I read over it a few times in my dream, but I couldn't remember all of the words when I woke up. I did remember what it taught (which was somewhat of a four dimensional experience), and I was able to write my own version of it. My poem turned out to be a lot longer than the one in the dream, because I'm just not as good with words as God, but I was able to keep some of the same flow and a few of the actual lines that I did remember after waking up, such as "Charity, a love of regularity" and one other line. I woke up out of the dream at two or three in the morning and wrote the poem before I forgot it. It's on my Sidewalks Are For Kids DVD. I thought I had the poem posted online, but I guess I haven't done that yet.

.1 Kings 4:7 | (Mar.25.2012) They also used a 12 month calendar.

.1 Kings 4:28 | (Mar.25.2012) dromedaries?

.1 Kings 4:32 | (Mar.25.2012) That's a lot. More than what's published in the Bible.

.1 Kings 5:5 | (Mar.25.2012) "He shall build an house unto My Name." But just because it's built doesn't mean that He will dwell in it (Acts 17:24). This is also mentioned in 2 Samuel 7:12-13.

.Acts 16:14 | (Mar.25.2012) God has some power to open people's heart to attend unto things spoken by others. It does say that she worshipped God, so she wasn't a non-believer. The next time you have something to share with someone it sounds like a good idea to say a prayer to ask God to open their heart to what you have to say, and for Him to open your heart to what someone else may have to say.

.Acts 16:16 | (Mar.25.2012) "Went to prayer" means they went to a place for prayer (Acts 3:1). Here in verse 16 it says the damsel was "possessed with a spirit of divination" letting us know that there are such spirits. In other words, what I'm telling you is not to play around with these things. You could open yourself up to being possessed by a spirit. We know that there is such a thing called prophecy, through which God can really reveal true things to people. But when we hear of other ungodly things, we tend to think they are all fake. Many people open themselves up to evil spirits because they think they are not real, and therefore they don't take them seriously enough to stay away from them.

.Acts 16:17 | (Mar.25.2012) When she cried "These men are the servants of the most high God, which shew unto us the way of salvation." Many people believe she was mocking them, but I'm not so sure of that. Yes, she was a soothsayer, and was not of God, but she was right in that they were the servants of the most high God, and showed them the way of salvation. Perhaps she wanted salvation. Those little evil powers she had were not fulfilling. True fulfillment is only found in God. She did follow them around, and I'm sure the spirit in her had bad intentions, but I believe somewhere deep inside was a lost lady who would rather be a servant of God and attain salvation, than to be the servant of this evil spirit.

.Acts 16:18 | (Mar.25.2012) We are told here "this did she many days." Perhaps she wanted to be delivered. Perhaps, the spirit in her was trying to use her to make it look like she was with them and validated by them, and could speak for them. Well, the lesson here is that if a servant of evil is sent around God's servants then there's a chance that evil will lose a servant, and that's just what happens here. She is delivered.

.Acts 16:19 | (Mar.25.2012) "when her masters saw that the hope of their gains was gone..." She was being used by others for money. They didn't care anything about her or her well-being.

.Acts 16:23 | (Mar.25.2012) This was done all because of money.

.Acts 16:27-29 | (Mar.25.2012) This man was about to go to Hell, and got saved and now on his way to Heaven, because Paul was attentive to the keeper's state of being. It is important for us not to simply look at others as friends with good desires or enemies who have evil desires, but to look at them as people who have feelings, worries, fears, and reasons for their desires. Paul also valued this man's life and eternity above his/their own physical freedom. That's true compassion, and real love, and in this instance it made a real difference.

.Acts 16:32 | (Mar.25.2012) They fed him the Word of the Lord after he was brought to Christ. They didn't just leave the other Romans to stay without Christ or to "choose for themselves."

Day 119: 1 Kings 6-7; Acts 17

.1 Kings 6:1 | (Mar.27.2012) Almost exact time reference

.1 Kings 6:7 | (Mar.27.2012) like bricks; 5:17

.1 Kings 6:12 | (Mar.27.2012) Notice that God said "if thou wilt walk in my statutes, and execute my judgments, and keep all my commandments to walk in them; then will I perform my word with thee..." This is what's called an if/then statement. It's conditional. God gives many conditional (if/then) statements in the Bible, and oftentimes we just remember the "then" part of it. Keep your eye out for this as you continue to read the Bible.

.1 Kings 6:16 | (Mar.27.2012) the oracle is described more in verses 19-20.

.1 Kings 6:17-18 | (Mar.27.2012) (highlighted). At the end of verse 18, it says "there was no stone seen." Along with what verse 7 says, it seemed like this was a very quiet and peaceful place, even as it was being constructed, but interesting to consider that while it was quiet here, there was plenty noise being made in other places to be able to construct this place.

.1 Kings 6:21 | (Mar.27.2012) (highlighted)

.1 Kings 6:37 | (Mar.27.2012) 6:1 tells when he started.

.1 Kings 6:38 | (Mar.27.2012) Bul is the eighth month. So it says here that it took Solomon seven years to build the house of the Lord. He had tons of people working on it though, as we see in 1 Kings 5:6. The seven years may also carry some significance of the seven days in which God created the earth (six days + the day of rest).

.1 Kings 7:1 | (Mar.27.2012) "building his own house thirteen years" Thirteen years? And he only spent seven years building the house of the Lord. It probably took him longer, because he hired less help building it, and it was probably less of an urgency.

.1 Kings 7:2 | (Mar.27.2012) "built also the house of the forest of Lebanon;" Sounds like this is a third house.

.1 Kings 7:7 | (Mar.27.2012) "the porch of judgment" | This sounds like it was made up by some kid playing church in front of his grandmomma's house.

.Acts 17:17 | (Mar.27.2012) "disputed he in the synagogue with the Jews..." - We see it's not bad in and of itself to dispute, and Paul also disputed in the synagogue. It also says he did so "in the market daily with them that met with him." He didn't just keep it behind the four walls, but out in public.

.Acts 17:19 | (Mar.27.2012) They should have did what the Bereans did and searched the scriptures daily to see if those things were so (verses 10-12).

.Acts 17:21 | (Mar.27.2012) "...spent their time in nothing else, but either to tell, or to hear some new thing." Sounds like today's New Age movement.

.Acts 17:22 | (Mar.27.2012)

.Acts 17:23 | (Mar.27.2012) Seeing that they had an altar with the superscription "To the Unknown God", we see that being agnostic is nothing new, and is addressed here. We also see that just because one person (or a group of people) doesn't know who God is, does not mean that nobody else knows either. This is a common error that prevents growth and learning: one person says they don't know, and instead of listening to someone who does know, they dismiss them and say that it is impossible for anyone to know.

.Acts 17:24 | (Mar.27.2012) "He is Lord of heaven and earth, dwelleth not in temples made with hands:" This is also said in Acts 7:48. From my understanding, this verse does not go well with the teachings of some who build huge buildings and then say God dwells inside of them; not inside of the people, but inside of the buildings, where you can even go to if you want to talk to Him. If we look at 1 Kings 5:5 and 2 Chronicles 6:9, God spoke of them building a house unto His name. He doesn't say to build a house for Him to dwell in. Also in 2 Chron. 6:9, God told David not to build a house for His name; so we see that even then, what was done, was not permissible by God do be done by everyone at their own will and whim. We can't just assume that God wants us to go and do the same thing that Solomon did, or to even try.

.Acts 17:27-28 | (Mar.27.2012) "For we are also his offspring" gives "new meaning" to the term God children. (as I say in my poem "My Poetry is Nonfiction").

.Acts 17:25 | (Mar.27.2012) "Neither is worshipped with men's hands..." God would rather have our hearts than our hands, and in John 4:24 Jesus says "God is a Spirit: and they that worship Him must worship Him in Spirit and in truth."

.Acts 17:31 | (Mar.27.2012) "that man" means Christ.

Day 120: 1 Kings 8-9; Acts 18

.1 Kings 8:2 | (Mar.28.2012) "the month Etanim, which is the seventh month"

.1 Kings 8:10-11 | (Mar.28.2012) cloud glory of God

.Acts 18:1 | (Mar.28.2012) Aquila and Priscilla are mentioned in 1 Corinthians 16:19.

.Acts 18:3 | (Mar.28.2012) Would Paul otherwise be considered homeless here?

.Acts 18:6 | (Mar.28.2012) Paul stops preaching to the Jews, saying "from henceforth I will go unto the Gentiles."

.Acts 18:7 | (Mar.28.2012) This may be the same Justus from Acts 1:23 who almost got voted in as the next twelfth apostle after Judas was gone. This may be the Jesus called Justus in Colossiand 4:11.

.Acts 18:8 | (Mar.28.2012) Crispus was baptized by Paul, he says in 1 Corinthians 1:14.

.Acts 18:9 | (Mar.28.2012) (highlighted)

.Acts 18:11 | (Mar.28.2012) 18 months

.Acts 18:12 | (Mar.28.2012) "...the Jews made insurrection with one accord against Paul"

.Acts 18:13-15 | (Mar.28.2012) Gallio dealt with it similar to how Pontius Pilate dealt with the Jesus situation, especially when saying "I will be no judge of such matters." When he says "reason would that I should bear with you." at the end of verse 14, he's saying it would reasonable for him to be in accord with them.

.Acts 18:16 | (Mar.28.2012) "he drave them from the judgment seat." (drave is the same thing as drove - the past tense of "drive").

.Acts 18:17 | (Mar.28.2012) The Greeks took Sosthenes? Why?

.Acts 18:21 | (Mar.28.2012) "I will return again unto you, if God will." He's not saying he will return to them if God returns to them. He's saying he will return to them if it's God's will (if God wants Him to).

.Acts 18:23 | (Mar.28.2012) (highlighted)

.Acts 18:24 | (Mar.28.2012) Apollos was mighty in the scriptures

.Acts 18:26 | (Mar.28.2012) Although mighty in the scriptures, Aquila and Priscilla were still able to expound unto him the way of God more perfectly. A lesson that can be learned from this is that even if you are mighty in the scriptures, don't think that everyone else is unable to expound the way of God more perfectly to you. Another lesson is that if you see someone who is mighty in the scriptures, don't feel as if they don't need someone to expound to them more perfectly. This should not be an issue of pride for either the one expounding or the one being expounded to. Notice that Aquila and Priscilla also are not seeking Apollos as a follower, neither do they act as if they are above him. It is brethren helping brethren, to help toward God's mission. We are not told what their titles are either, because it's not about that. It appears to be like iron sharpening iron.

.Acts 18:28 | (Mar.28.2012) Apollos was the one to finally convince the Jews that Jesus was Christ. This is the Apollos mentioned in 1 Corinthians 1:12-13 and 3:4-7.

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