New Books at Bridge-Logos Foundation

Next week Steve Becker and I will be going to Tulsa to show our books at Empowered 21. Some of the exciting new releases we'll be showing and selling are:

• Elijah Legacy by David Davis--a book for those who are interested in the end times and who want to learn how to become prophetic intercessors whose prayers will result in people's hearts turning back to God. This book is about a restoration of the prophetic, the Elisha Generation, the forerunner-finisher anointing, the double portion, confronting the Jezebel spirit, the rise and fall of Islam, and the end-time harvest. What a comprehensive book. (David Davis is the pastor of Kehilat HaCarmel on Mount Carmel in Israel.)
• The Extinction of Evolution by Darek Isaacs. This book teaches about the fallacies of evolution via both fiction and non-fiction. The fictional part involves letters that come from the celllar of Dr. Iman Oxidant; the letters reveal the motives behind evolutionary theories, atheists, and evolutionists. Learn about the mind set from which evolution and atheism were born. (Darek Isaacs is an author, film producer, and speaker. He is the President and Founder of Watchmen 33, an orgainzation that confirms the authority of the Bible.)
• The Power of God Thinking by Keith C. Powell. Through this book the reader will learn how to line up his or her thoughts with God's (as they are revealed in His Word) and discover and entirely new way to think. (Keith C. Powell is the founder and pastor of Crown of Life Ministries.)
• Christ Is God's Everything for You by Harold J. Chadwick. This very Christocentric book is for everyone who wants to know Jesus better. It shows how He is the fulfillment of every spiritual blessing for your life. This book will take readers into the very heart of the Christian faith. (Harold J. Chadwick is the Senior Editor for Bridge-Logos Foundation.)
• Luther Gold (compiled by Ray Comfort). The reader of this book will experience a greater level of faith, and a strong desire to reach others with the Gospel of Jesus Christ. (Ray Comfort is the best-selling author of more than fifty books and founder of Living Waters ministry.)
• Jake's Fortune by Ray Comfort with Anna Jackson. This is a Western novel that deals with so many aspects of the human condition, including murder, romance, greed, and faith. This is an exciting novel.
• City of Refuge by Ashley King. This is a very compelling novel that will bring hope and inspiration to every reader. It is good for both adults and young people. (Ashley King is a graduate of Mount Vernon Nazarene University. She lives on a miniature farm in southern Ohio.)
• God Print by Skip Heitzig. This book introduces readers to a fresh approach in self-examination, leadership, and outreach in the context of biblical truth. Learn how to leave a lasting God Print upon the world. (Skip Heitzig is the pastor of Calvary of Albuquerque and the author of numerous books.)
• Uncivil Society--Government's War Against God and the Plight of the Christian Citizen by Adam G. Mersereau. This timely book show the reader what his/her biblical responsibilities are and how to live in an "uncivil society." (Adam Mersereau is an attorney and a former officer in the United States Marine Corps.)
• Dragons or Dinosaurs? Creation or Evolution? by Darek Isaacs. How do dragon legends fit in with the Bible? Could they be one and the same? Darek offers intriguing answers to these provocative questions. (Darek Isaacs maintains that the great mysteries of human existence are answered only through the knowledge of Jesus Christ.)
• Rekindle Your Dreams by Trish Porter. This book by an Olympic champion shows the reader that it is possible to rekindle your dreams, as Trish Porter's life aptly demonstrates. Learn how to realize your desires, become successful, and live your dreams.
• Spurgeon on Prayer by Charles H. Spurgeon. This is a Pure Gold Classic. Learn about prayer from the Prince of Preachers, who spent a great deal of time in his prayer closet and daily sought the Lord. He believed that God hears and answers prayer. (Charles Haddon Spurgeon was a British Baptist pastor who served at the Metropolitan Tabernacle in London.)

I am very excited about the ministry potential of these new books. Great opportunities for summer reading here!

Holy Week

Though every week should be holy, to be sure, this week is regarded by many Christians as "Holy Week," because this is a week that commemorates the last week of our Lord's life on Earth--Palm Sunday through Easter Sunday.

On that first Palm Sunday the people, including children, shouted, "Hosanna in the highest!" They spread palms along the road and honored the King of kings as He rode into Jerusalem on the back of a donkey. "From Olivet they followed 'mid and exultant crowd, the victor palm branch waving, and the chanting clear and loud, the Lord of earth and heaven rode on in lowly state, nor scorned that little children should on his bidding wait" (From "Hosanna, Loud Hosanna").

They adored this man, who had brought such hope to the hearts of people, but then things began to change.

After this triumphal entry, things began to grow darker for our Lord. "Go to dark Gethsemane, you that fel the tempter's power, your Redeemer's conflict see; watch with him one bitter hour; turn not from his griefs away; learn of Jesus Christ to pray" (From "Go to Dark Gethsemane").

I wonder what it would have been like to have been in the Garden with Jesus? What was it like for the disciples at the Last Supper in the Upper Room? "An upper room with evening lamps a shine, the twelve disciples, and the table spread; now in our turn Christ bids us pour the wine, and in remembrance bless and break the bread" (From "An Upper Room With Evening Lamps").

Jesus could find no one to pray with Him in the Garden of Gethsemane. He ate His last supper with His followers, but He knew one of them would betray Him into the hands of those who wanted to kill Him.

After taking Him away, they dressed Him in a purple robe and a crown of thorns. They placed a reed in His right hand. He was mocked, scourged, spit upon, derided, and defamed. He bore all our sins and woes. Beneath a darkened sky, He hung upon a tree, and, as the African-American spiritual tells us, "He never said a mumbalin' word."

They nailed Him to a tree, and the Lamb of God was slain for the sins of the world. Behold the Lamb of God!

Jesus died that we might live--abundant and eternal life to give. It is ours if we will but believe. Only receive and only believe--all things are possible; only believe.

"Low in the grave He lay--Jesus my Savior, waiting the coming day--Jesus my Lord!" Death could not hold Him down. Up from the grave He arose with a mighty triumph over His foes! His battle ended there, as death was overcome.

"Bearing shame and scoffing rude,
In my place condemned He stood;
Sealed my pardon with His blood,
Hallelujah! What a Savior!

"Lifted up was He to die,
'It is finished,' was His cry;
Now in Heaven exalted high,
Hallelujah! What a Savior!"

"O death, where is thy sting? O grave, where is thy victory? The sting of death is sin; and the strength of sin is in the law. but thanks be to God, which giveth us the victory through our Lord Jesus Christ" (1 Corinthians 15:55-57).

On Sunday we will celebrate these glorious truths. It is known as Easter, but perhaps a better name would be Resurrection Sunday. Happy Resurrection Sunday, everyone!

Our Inheritance in Christ

We are joint-heirs with Jesus Christ. This means that we have received the same inheritance He has. Paul writes, "Blessed be the God and Father of our Lord Jesus Christ, who hath blessed us with all spiritual blessings in heavenly places in Christ" (Ephesians 1:3).

Every spiritual blessing is already ours. All we have to do is appropriate and receive those blessings that our loving Father has provided for us. Isn't this exciting news?

The Apostle Peter writes, "His divine power has given us everything we need" (2 Peter 1:3, NIV). Everything we need! This is our inheritance as the adopted children of God, who cry, "Abba, Father."

Paul puts it this way, "But my God shall supply all your need according to his riches in glory by Christ Jesus" (Philippians 4:19).

What is our inheritance as believers?

• All spiritual blessings
• Everything we need
• The supply of all that we need

The list is much longer than the above three entries suggest. Each one of them entails a multitude of separate blessings that are ours.

Jesus said, "Your Father knoweth what things ye have need of before ye ask him" (Matthew 6:8). He also said, "Ask, and it shall be given you; seek, and ye shall find; knock, and it shall be opened unto you: For every one that asketh receiveth; and he that seeketh findeth; and to him that knocketh it shall be opened. . . . how much more shall your Father which is in heaven give good things to them that ask him?" (Matthew 7:7-11).

It's all our in Christ Jesus, and more. The Bible says, "Now unto him that is able to do exceeding abundantly above all that we ask or thin, according to his power that worketh in us, Unto him be glory in the church by Christ Jesus throughout all ages, world without end" (Ephesians 3:20-21).

Will you receive your inheritance today?

The Spirit of Violence

I am very much concerned about something: It seems as if a spirit of violence is permeating the American culture at this time. It is even appearing is some segments of Christianity.

Jesus said, "Blessed are the peacemakers: for they shall be called the children of God" (Matthew 5:9). If peacemakers are called the children of God, what are people who stir up violence called?

The Bible says the following about wrath and violence:

•  "Wrath is cruel, and anger is outrageous" (Proverbs 27:4).
•  "Do violence to no man" (Luke 3:14).
•  "Deliver me, O Lord, from the evil man: preserve me from the violent man; Which imagine mischiefs in their heart; continually they are gathered for war. They have sharpened their tongues like a serpent; adders' poison is under their lips. Selah. Keep me, O Lord, from the hands of the wicked; preserve me from the violent man" (Psalm 140:1-4)
•  "For the wrath of man worketh not the righteousness of God" (James 1:20).

These and many other similar passages are scriptural admonitions worth remembering in our present time.

The Apostle Paul wrote, "Let no corrupt communication proceed out of your mouth, but that which is good to the use of edifying, that it may minister grace unto the hearers. And grieve not the holy Spirit of God, whereby ye are sealed unto the day of redemption. Let all bitterness, and wrath, and anger, and clamour, and evil speaking, be put away from you, with all malice: And be ye kind one to another, tenderhearted, forgiving one another, even as God for Christ's sake hath forgiven you" (Ephesians 4:29-32).

Further, Paul says in Galatians: "Now the works of the flesh are manifest, which are these: Adultery, fornication, uncleanness, lasciviousness, idolatry, witchcraft, hatred, variance, emulations, wrath, strife, seditions, heresies, envyings, murders, drunkenness, revellings, and such like: of the which I tell you before, as I have also told you in times past, that they which do such things shall not inherit the kingdom of God" (Galatians 5:19-21).

That's a very strong statement, indeed. Then Paul goes on to contrast the works of the flesh with the fruit of the Spirit: love, joy, peace, longsuffering, gentleness, goodness, faith, meekness, and temperance.

Help us, Father, get beyond the division, strife, bitterness, and hatred that are manifested in the lives of so many today. Help people to realize that the answer is to be found only in the Prince of Peace, our Lord and Savior, Jesus Christ.

Taming Your Tongue and Fine-tuning Your Ears

We're surrounded by negativity in our world today. It's on the news, at the workplace, on emails we receive, in the utterances of politicians, in newspapers and magazines, on radio and television, and in general conversations at home and in the marketplace. There is great power in the words we say. In fact, the Bible says, "Death and life are in the power of the tongue: and they that love it shall eat the fruits thereof" (Proverbs 18:21). As you know, some of those fruits are bitter, and they can be very destructive in people's lives.

I remember overhearing something a fellow-teacher I worked with at an elementary school said. She thrust the results of a standardized test in the face of one of our students and hatefully uttered these stinging and condemning words, "See, Richard, this proves it. You are stupid!" I wonder if Richard still experiences the biting condemnation of those words now, some thirty years later.

What does the Bible have to say about the way in which we should use our tongues?

• We should not engage in flattery. "The Lord shall cut off all flattering lips, and the tongue that speaketh proud things" (Psalms 12:3).
• We should keep our tongue from evil (including every negative comment): "For he that will love life, and see good days, let him refrain his tongue from evil, and his lips that they speak no guile" (1 Peter 3:10).
• How we use our tongues plays a role in our health. "There is that speaketh like the piercings of a sword: but the tongue of the wise is health" (Proverbs 12:18).
• A wholesome tongue is a tree of life. "A wholesome tongue is a tree of life; but perverseness therein is a breach in the spirit" (Proverbs 15:4).

The Scriptures abound with references to the use of our tongues and with warnings about misusing them. The following usages are condemned unequivocally: backbiting, lying, slandering, using a multitude of words, deceitfulness, speaking guile, flattery, hypocrisy, swearing, taking God's name in vain, etc.

Instead, we are enjoined to speak the truth in love, tame our tongues, ask God to put a watch before our lips, to rejoice evermore, to use our tongues to tell others about Jesus, to pray, and to praise the Lord.

Clearly, the way we use our tongues is a serious business, indeed. Do we use our tongues to build others up or to tear them down? To give glory to God or to glorify ourselves? To encourage others or to discourage them? To plant positive or negative seeds? Do we use our tongues as tools of blessing or criticism?

We also need to be careful about what we listen to. What goes into the ear, finds its way to the heart, and what goes into the heart, comes out in one's life. "As a man thinketh in his heart, so is he."

Do you remember the children's chorus: "Be careful, little ears, what you hear? The Father up above is looking down in love, so be careful, little ears, what you hear"?

As adults, we need to reflect on these truths, as well. In the mid-eighteenth century a group of Methodist men, including John Wesley, signed the following covenant (which Bob Gass writes about in the Bridge-Logos devotional, entitled Best of the Word for Today):

• That we will not listen to, or willingly inquire after ill concerning one another
• That if we do hear any ill of each other, we will not believe it
• That as soon as possible, we will communicate what we hear by speaking or writing to the person concerned
• That until we have done this, we will not write or speak a syllable of it to any other person
• That neither will we mention it after we have done this, to any other person
• That we will not make any exception to any of these rules, unless we think ourselves absolutely obliged, and then only in conference.

We would be well-advised to post these commitments in a prominent place in order to remind ourselves to "speak no evil, hear not evil, and see no evil." Certainly these rules are important ones to follow at home, at work, in church, and in every group in which we participate.

"But speaking the truth in love, may grow up into him in all things, which is the head, even Christ" (Ephesians 4:15).

"Let the words of my mouth, and the meditation of my heart, be acceptable in thy sight, O Lord, my strength, and my redeemer" (Psalm 19:14).

Turn Your Eyes Upon Jesus

A mother came into the room of her little girl who had been sick and noticed that she was sitting up in bed crying. She said, "What's wrong, honey?"

On the wall across from the foot of the little girl's bed was a mirror. On the wall above the headboard of her bed was a picture of Jesus.

The little girl said, "Mommy, when I see myself I can't see Jesus." (She had been used to seeing the picture of Jesus reflected in the mirror on the opposite wall as she was lying in bed. However, when she sat up, the reflection changed, obliterating the picture of Jesus and replacing it with her own reflection. This was very upsetting to her.)

It's so true--when we see ourselves we can't see Jesus, and this should upset us as well.

The chorus advises us to: "Turn your eyes upon Jesus, look full in his wonderful face; and the things of earth will grow strangely dim in the light of his glory and grace."

"Wherefore seeing we also are compassed about with so great a cloud of witnesses, let us lay aside every weight, and the sin which doth so easily beset us, and let us run with patience the race that is set before us, looking unto Jesus the author and finisher [the pioneer and perfecter] of our faith; who for the joy that was set before him endured the cross, despising the shame, and is set down at the right hand of the throne of God" (Hebrews 12:1-2).

Let's turn away from sin, worries of all kinds, the situations we see around us, the troubles that beset us, and let us turn our eyes upon Jesus who loves us with an everlasting love.

Jesus' Prayer in His Hour of Trial

As we approach Good Friday, it is important to note how important prayer was to our Lord and Master, Jesus Christ.

Matthew writes, "Going a little farther, He fell with His face to the ground and prayed" (Matthew 26:19).

Prayer was so important to Jesus, because it was His direct-line access to his Father in Heaven. It is the same with us. Jeremiah writes, "Call unto me, and I will answer thee, and shew thee great and mighty things, which thou knowest not" (Jeremiah 33:3).

In Morning by Morning by Charles H. Spurgeon (a Pure Gold Classic that is published by Bridge-Logos Foundation) we read, "There are several instructive features in our Savior's prayer in His hour of trial," then he goes on to list and discuss each one (referring to Matthew 26:39):

• It was a lonely prayer. We need to be alone with the Lord every day. Such solitude is practically and spiritually helpful to us.
• It was a humble prayer. We must humble ourselves before the Lord at all times by realizing who we are and who He is. In prayer, we are kneeling before the throne of the Most High God.
• It was a filial prayer. We have been adopted into the royal family of Almighty God. We are joint-heirs with Jesus Christ, and we need to cry out, "Abba, Father."
• It was a persevering prayer. We must ". . .contine in prayer, and watch in the same with thanksgiving."
• It was a prayer of resignation. We need to resign ourselves to the Father's will through absolute surrender and death to self.

Spurgeon writes, "Yield, and God yields. Let it be as God wills, and God will determine for the best. Be content to leave your prayer in His hands. He knows when to give, how to give, what to give, and what to withhold."