Proverbs 21:6

December 21, 2020 by Leave a Comment

“The getting of treasures by a lying tongue

    is a fleeting vapor and a snare of death.”

Proverb 21:6

If the ultimate goal is to get treasure, then a person may believe any means necessary is an acceptable philosophy of life. “I’m gonna get mine,” he might laughingly say. However, at the end of the day, he will discover that the treasure was nothing more than a fleeting vapor.

This reminds me of the man who spent his life climbing the ladder of success only to discover that he had his ladder leaning against the wrong building.

A couple questions: What is your ultimate goal in life? If you reached that goal would it be a fleeting vapor?

Filed Under: Proverbs, wisdom Tagged With:

Proverbs 19:20

December 19, 2020 by Leave a Comment

“Listen to advice and accept instruction,

    that you may gain wisdom in the future.”

Proverbs 19:20 ESV

The most basic point of this proverb may slip past the reader. To wit, wisdom comes as a result of a willingness to listen to advice and accept instruction.

If others regularly tell you, “You won’t listen to anybody,” then you are not on a path toward wisdom. There is more in this proverb, but spending time thinking on this obvious point is worthwhile.

Lord, help me to be willing to receive instruction and advice from others.

Filed Under: Proverbs, wisdom Tagged With:

Proverbs 17:4

December 17, 2020 by Leave a Comment

“An evildoer listens to wicked lips,

    and a liar gives ear to a mischievous tongue.”

Proverbs 17:4

Note the parallels. I think most people would consider a liar to be untrustworthy or someone to avoid. However, I doubt many people would normally substitute the word evildoer in place of liar. Nor, do I think many people would normally think of someone who lies as having “wicked lips.” My natural reaction is that those substitutions sound harsh. Yet, God interchanges these words in these ways.

One thing I think this reveals is the contrast between how people tend to view sin and how God views sin. It seems to me that God sees sin as exceedingly sinful (or evil) and I tend to soften it a bit. Does that make me kinder than God? Not at all. It makes me less accurate than God.

Lord, help me to see how evil sin is, resulting in a greater desire to avoid it and to walk in righteousness.

Filed Under: Proverbs, wisdom Tagged With:

Pictorial Library: 1-2 Corinthians

December 16, 2020 by Leave a Comment

BiblePlaces.com has just released their latest Photo Companion to the Bible, 1-2 Corinthians, and it is a winner!

What is a Photo Companion to the Bible?

Simply put, it is one of the most valuable teaching resources that Bible teachers (or students) can acquire because it helps the user better understand the cultural and geographical references of a particular book of the Bible. Bible teachers are wise to provide visual support for their teaching; and the Pictorial Companion is perfect for this purpose.

“This photo collection is remarkable! It provides a wonderful tour of the city and also includes pictures and interpretations of objects related to both the background and the subject of the text. Viewing the slides, I felt as if I I had found a pearl of great price that both informs and enriches one’s understanding of this letter.”

David E. Garland, Professor of Christian Scriptures, George W. Truett Theological Seminary, Baylor University; author of 1 Corinthians in the BECNT series

Here is BiblePlaces.com’s description of this collection:

The Photo Companion to the Bible is a unique collection of digital photographs that illustrate the biblical text verse by verse.

  • PowerPoint-based resource
  • Library of images provides broad selection
  • Created by a team of professors and scholars
  • Organized by chapter and verse
  • Each chapter is illustrated by 45–200 photographs

What’s included in the 1-2 Corinthians Photo Companion?

This resource includes 2,500 photos. However, these aren’t 2,500 random photos that are somewhat related to First or Second Corinthians. These photos are organized by chapter and verse with helpful explanatory notes provided in PowerPoint format. While they are ready for use upon arrival, you may want to move the photos into your own presentation format.

While the photos are what catch the eye, the notes are a critical element of this resource. These notes are not a collection of random quotes gathered from the Internet for Uncle Joe’s Blog. They are produced by genuine scholars who have expertise related to the topics.

“When I discovered the resources offered through BiblePlaces.com I was thrilled. The photos have been a tremendous help to me! They are high quality, wisely organized, and reasonably priced. As one who loves geography, history, culture, and archaeology, these images have been a tremendous blessing and have greatly enriched my ministry.”

Pastor Joel DeSelm, South Bend, Indiana

What makes this collection better than what I can get in a study Bible or a biblical backgrounds textbook?

Admittedly, there are some good illustrated study Bibles and biblical background commentaries/textbooks available. However, the very nature of those publications limits their true effectiveness in visually illustrating the biblical text. The most obvious advantage of the Photo Companion to the Bible is the sheer volume of photos it provides for each chapter of the Bible. For example, at most, a printed text, whether a study Bible or a textbook, is limited to a few illustrations for a whole book of the Bible. Let’s be generous and say there is one illustration per page of that text. However many illustrations that would be for a particular published text, it pales in comparison to the 50, 70, 100, or more photos per Bible chapter that are provided in this library!

What are some highlights from this collection?

  • The city of Corinth and its archaeological remains
  • Images illustrating the worldly wisdom of Greco-Roman society
  • Photos of athletic competitions, racetracks, and prizes
  • Photos of Greco-Roman temples and meat markets
  • Coins illustrating orators and the Emperor Nero
  • Biblical scrolls showing Paul’s use of the Hebrew Bible
  • Papyrus letters, scribal tools, and artwork of scrolls
  • Ancient manuscripts related to stewardship, lawsuits, and divorce
  • Busts and portraits illustrating ancient head coverings
  • Traditional tents and portrayals of tent-making
  • Statues of famous individuals known to the Corinthians
  • Weaponry, armor, and strongholds from the biblical world
  • Imagery of planting, building, temptation, judgment, household gatherings, communal meals, grief, joy, decay, conflict, sowing, and reaping
  • Frescoes illustrating marriage, worship, sacrifice, prayer, freedom, conscience, judgment, field work, sailing, worship, and pagan wisdom

Can you give me an example of how this works?

The following elements are provided in a slide related to 1 Corinthians 13:2.
1. The biblical text or phrase.
2. The photo or illustration.
3. Identification or explanation of the photo or illustration.
4. Commentary relating the photo to the text.

Using the 4 point guide above, all the elements below are included in a PowerPoint slide:

  1. “And if I have prophetic powers, and understand all mysteries and all knowledge…”
  2. [note the photos in the Companion do not have the © statement]

3. Library of Celsus at Ephesus

4. Paul was in Ephesus when he wrote 1 Corinthians (1 Cor 16:8). The Library of Celsus, built in AD 110, once housed some 12,000 scrolls. It is noteworthy that during Paul’s stay at Ephesus (from which he wrote this letter to Corinth), a number of new followers of Jesus who had previously practiced magic brought together their books and burned them publicly (Acts 19:19).

FREE SAMPLES!

Download the free PowerPoint of 1 Corinthians 13 here.
Download the free PowerPoint sample of 2 Corinthians 4 here.

How much does it cost?

The regular list price for the Photo Companion to the Bible: 1-2 Corinthians is $109, which is a bargain. However, this resource is currently on sale for $69, and you can order here!

Disclaimer

I have some photos in this collection. However, I am recommending it here because I believe in the product. I personally use the Bible Companion: Acts in my Life of Paul course at Baptist Bible College, and have received many comments from students about how helpful the images are in illustrating the text.

Filed Under: apologetics, archaeology, commercials, Culture, favorites, Helpful Tips, Helping Others, New Testament, Pass-Alongs, Photography, Recommended, Reviews, Samaritans, Students, Teaching, technology, Word Pictures

Proverbs 16:5

December 16, 2020 by Leave a Comment

“Everyone who is arrogant in heart is an abomination to the Lord; be assured, he will not go unpunished.”

Proverbs 16:5 ESV

One irony of this proverb is that those who are arrogant often consider themselves to be an asset to God, someone God should be happy to have around. In reality, the opposite is true; arrogance is disgusting to God … and often to people, too. Speaking from experience, arrogance causes a blindness to one’s deficiencies. Perhaps the first sign of arrogance is the inability (or unwillingness) to recognize any flaws, weaknesses, or sin in our own lives.

Another irony in this proverb is related to the assurance of punishment. So often we have our own image of what punishment looks like and find ourselves wondering when is God going to punish that arrogant person. However, the punishment for being arrogant may come in a variety of forms, some of which we may have never considered. Therefore, we should not presume to dictate to God how he should mete out punishment lest God consider us to be arrogant. In other words, we should “stay in our own lane,” focusing on our own hearts.

Filed Under: Proverbs, wisdom Tagged With:
« Previous Page
Next Page »