Jen

What do Philippians 1:23 and 2 Corinthans 5:6-8 teach you about the state of Christians immediately after death? How does this comfort you? How does this energize you? This teaches that when we leave this body we are instantly with the Lord. This is a great comfort and hope. Jesus is our hope and we will be with Him forever. I want to be found faithful until that day. I also want to be a better witness for Him. God Bless! Jen Numbers 6: 24-26

How can fear keep us from being a bold witness? Fear is paralyzing until we conquer it. Paul lived with fear but he mastered the fear and not vice versa. I find fear to be constantly present in the background but the funny thing is that I never know when it will strike. Just when I think that I 'm learning boldness I find that out of nowhere fear strikes. It takes prayer. Why does fear of people bind our tongues? Why DOES fear of people bind our tongues. Look who we are children of. I don't understand it when I look at God and who HE is. It boggles the mind. How does losing our life for Christ's sake actually give us an abundant life? When we focus on Christ and live for Him we are freed from wordly views and pressures that restrict and enslave. What fear is keeping me from a clear witness? Like I said earlier fear can and does pop up at any time. God Bless! Jen Numbers 6:24-26

Why is our ability to rejoice so dependant upon our faith that God is in control, working even in the midst of difficulty. If I didn't believe that God was in control things would be overwhelmingly hopeless and when I take my eyes off Christ and focus on the diffculties it seems that way. I must keep my eyes on Him and not the problems! This requires discipline. What must you believe in order to be able to rejoice in the midst of problems? I must believe in His Word and that His promises are for sure. I must remember that His ways are not my ways but His ways are AWESOME! What is the basis for believing that? His Word,His Spirit in me, the inner knowledge that He is. The fool sayeth in His heart there is not God. God Bless! Jen Numbers 6:24-26

From the standpoint of witness to others you are much more credible when you are undergoing personal struggles, stress, and problems. Why is this so? Everyone has difficulties and people are naturally curious and have a tendency to gossip or talk about someone who is going tthrough a time of trials. So your witness has more credibility to it if handled with a Christlike attitude. That is not a natural condition of fallen man so trials are important in the life of a Christian for his witness and to strengthen his own faith. Why was Paul's witness so powerful? The greater the struggles the more is the testimony and Paul obeyed God no matter what because Paul KNEW the eternal consequences. God Bless! Jen Numbers 6 :24-26

What does Paul expect God to do for the Philippian believers? Why does he expect God to do this? What is the basis of Paul's confidence? On what basis can we expect God to do this for us? Paul expects God to complete the good work He started in them because Paul knows and believes God's promises. God will finish what He has begun! As I was working on this the song He who began a good work in you was playing on Christian radio! Praise God!! God Bless! Jen Numbers 6:24-26

Why does Paul ask God to give the Philippian Christians discernment? To know what is best. What will be the result of discernment in their lives? They will strive for the best that God has to offer for them. How does selfishness cloud judgement? When I am being selfish I am thinking about me and my wants which are substandard to God's desires for me and my ways are not God's ways. How is the good the enemy of the best in our lives? When we are willing to settle for the good we give up to soon and miss the best. God Bless! Jen Numbers 6:24-26

When we become financial partners with a Christian church or ministry what should we expect to receive out of the partnership? The joy of doing for the Lord. It is a privilege. What other kind of support can we offer beside financial? A kind word, a smile, the touch of a hand on a shoulder, a cooked meal, what ever is in your power to do. It may be the very thing that saves a person or keeps them from despair. God Bless! Jen Numbers6:24-26

What is the basic idea of slave? what is the basic idea of saint? In what way are these words saying the same thing about a Christians relationship to God? Slave: A person who is the property of and wholly subject to another; a person under the domination of an influence or person. Saint: A person formally recognized by the Christian church as being exceptionally holy; a person of great virtue or benevolence. In Christ we are no longer slaves to sin but saints meaning those who are holy, set apart for God. We have a new Master who we are expected to be wholly commited to and to obey. For those who are wholly commited to Christ there is a joy and a freedom in the journey. God Bless! Jen Numbers6:24-26

This as all the studies help me to grow and learn more about God and my own Christian walk. They help keep my mind focused on Christ in the times of happiness and the times of struggle. I am getting to know many in my family by reading their posts and the wonderful insight they have. We all have something to offer. I can't think of anyway of improving on this study and I thank God for Pastor Ralph and for all of you who pray and do your posts. God Bless! Jen Numbers 6:24-26 My husband is returning from the Middle East for a week. I appreciate your prayers. I feel so nervous sometimes.

The stakes are too high to ignore. Many of us have someone who is straying. Maybe one of you or me will be the one to return that poor soul back to the Truth. Let's pray that God will keep each of us in the Truth with His strong protective hand. God Bless! Jen Numbers6:24-26 Remember "Let all that you do be done in love"

What is the elders role in prayer for the sick? What must be their spiritual qualifications for this ministry of prayer? First they must pray and then annnoint with oil. This is from the Greek word aleipho which means rub with oil. I think it simply means God can heal with or without means but if He has given us means use them. But it's God who does the healing according to His will. These must be mature people of the faith. God Bless! Jen Numbers6:24-26

According to verse 14 who is to initiate the prayer for healing? Why might this be important. The sick person is to initiate the prayer for healing. This is showing his faith or hope since God does not always choose to heal even though we are told to pray. It also shows humility on his part both in his need for God to heal and for our dependance on one another as a family that none of us is above anyone else. We need God and we need each other! God Bless! Jen Numbers 6:24-26

What does our grumbling and complaining say about us? It reminds me of the Israelites after they left Egypt. It seems that before they were groaning and after they were grumbling. There is a difference between groaning and grumbling. It speaks to me of a discontented heart and spirit towards God. Of an ungrateful attitude. As always I need work in this area! About our faith? It speaks to me of faith as being something that expects God to always give us everything we want . Like a magic wand otherwise we don't care about faith we would rather grumble. We want faith to be the tool that gives us everything we want rather than the gift that God gives us when He knows the way is dark to light our path. As always I need work in this area. About our patience? We have very little at best when we grumble. As always I need work in this area. God Bless! Jen Numbers 6:24-26

What danger is James warning about in verses 13-16? James is telling us that in our planning and we all need to plan we need to pray and seek God's guidance, to humble ourselves under His mighty hand for He knows the future and cares for us. How can we be humble in our planning without being indecisive and wishy washy. Pray first for God's guidance and when you are confident in the answer ACT! God Bless, Jennifer Numbers 6:24-26 Last night as I was praying I felt God telling me I needed to make a follow up phone call. I felt Him saying He would be with me. Although I was not wanting to do this I had a couple confirmations that I should. The phone call was as bad as I thought but I believe it was necessary for me to stand up against what was being done and I was not wishy washy.

What can happen to us Christians if we lack the patience to eagerly expect Christ's return. We can easily become discouraged and disheatened. We need to look forward to Christs coming to give us the hope we need to live the godly lives in Christ Jesus that the world needs to see in us. Right now for me the days seem very dark and when I sing songs like Soon and very soon we are going to see the Lord it gives me hope. Why is patience so vital? God's timetable is diffferent from ours. He is working out things in this world that take time and we must be patient realizing that He is at work and it is a wonderful work. We must lift each other up in prayer and those around us who are fellow sufferers for the Lord and for those in darkness. I'm convinced that the answer is God and that prayer is vital. God Bless! Jen Numbers 6:24-26

In what way does bad mouthing a neighbor cause you to be judge of the law? Why is it tempting to bad mouth others do you think? How can I judge if I am quilty of the same thing? If I judge someone else when I am quilty then I am setting myself above the law which says love your neighbor and pray for those who persecute you. Judge not lest you be judged. John 5:22 says "For the Father judgeth no man, but hath committed all judgement unto the Son". I may make myself judge in my own eyes but since I can't back it up with the power to be that judge it is false because I myself will be judged by the One who has the authority to judge. I think it is tempting to bad mouth others when we have been hurt or feel that an injustice has done to us or to make ourselves feel good about ourselves when we don't want to admit that we deserve judgement. Please pray for Terri Schiavo and the Schindler family today and for Michael Schiavo. Praise God for His mercy on us all. God Bless! Jen Numbers 6:24-26

Verses 7-10 contain different commands. Why are these actions to vital? So that we might live godly in Christ Jesus and to take our sin seriously. In what way do they go against our nature? They go against our fleshly nature which is ruled by pride. Which of them is the hardest for you? Draw near to God. God Bless! Jen Numbers 6:24-26

Wy does James refer to church members as adulteresses? We are the bride of Christ. What does the adultery consist of? Friendship with the world. Putting anyone or anything over Christ. Who is the aggrieved husband? Jesus. We are His bride. What is wrong with friendship with the world? How can I love the world which treated my Savior so? God Bless, Jen Numbers 6: 24-26

In what way is showing regards towards the wealthy a denial of mercy? If I show regards toward the wealthy for the simple fact that they have money it is like saying they can buy my love. God's offer of savation was out of complete total mercy on a depraved race, rich or poor and cannot be bought. It is a free gift for us but it wasn't free for Jesus. Extra Credit Read Hosea 6:6, Matthew5:7 and 9:13. Inwhat way does mercy triumph over judgement or rejoice over judgement. What does this mean? When God gave the Mosaic law it was to show us what we must do to not be judged by Him and since none of us can measure up to the law but all have fallen short He provided a way through the blood of His Son Jesus Christ our Lord and Savior so that he could extend mercy over any who would believe on Jesus through the shedding of His blood for the remission of their sins. Therefore God's mercy triumphs over judgment and we can rejoice because we will not be judged but we have received salvation of our souls through His mercy. God Bless! Jen Numbers6:24-26 Matthew Henry says "the power of godliness is the main thing God looks at and requires, and without it the form of godliness is of no use."

Why does James refer to the Great commandment as the Royal Law? How is it more royal than the Mosaic Law. How does showing favoritism toward a rich person break the royal law toward that rich person? How does it break the Royal Law in regard to a poor person? To me the great commandment is the culmination of all the commandments. It is the Royal Law. God is love and He showed us His love by dying for us while we were yet sinners. "Amazing love how can it be that thou my God shouldst die for me". The Bible says Let all that you do be done in love. 1 Cor. 16:14. This is one verse that I like to use with some non believers because it is nonthreatening because we all like to be treated with love. If we were to give undue favoritism to the rich and not to the poor we would be discrimminating against our Lord "for though He was rich yet He became poor". We are to be honest with all and love all regardless of their status in life. This is a comfort to the rich and poor because the poor are held in the same regard as the rich in God's eyes and if the rich enters misfortune He is stilll held in the same regard in God's eyes. It is the worth of the eternal soul that God values not a persons money and all we own really belongs to Him anyway. So to show favoritism towards a rich person is not to be honest with him about the true nature of God's love for him. Ditto for the poor person. God Bless Jen Numbers 6:24-26

I try not to discriminate but I find myself doing it and I can't narrow it down to a specific type of person. It sort of depends on where we are living and what is going on. It is sin and I confess it and pray for me and whoever I feel these feelings come up against. Many times I have felt the one discriminated against in churches probably because I am usually the new person. God Bless Jen Numbers 6:24-26

Why are we so easily fooled into thinking that listening to Bible teaching means that we are living out righteous lives? What is the nature of self deception? We are fooled because we desire to be fooled so we can feel good about our selves and do not have to work at growing and being more like Jesus. The nature of self deception is that it is blindness. We don't even realize the danger we are in. 1 Peter 5:2 says Be sober, be vigilant; because your adversary the devil, as a roaring lion, walketh about, seeking whom He may devour. I fear some are devoured right in their church pews. This is scary. God Bless Jen Numbers 6:24-26

What is this perfect law that James mentions? How would you define it? How does it relate to theroyal law? In what sense does it bring liberty? The perfect law is God. It is the essence of who He is. It is His character, His glory, His holiness, His perfectness, His goodness. He is perfect love and that is the royal law. For God so loved the world that He gave His only begotten son that whosoever believeth in Him should not perish but have everlasting life (john 3:16). That brings us liberty. We are no longer slaves to sin but sons "having predestined us into the adoption of children by Jesus Christ to Himself, according to the pleasure of His will (Ephesians 1:5) God Bless Jen Numbers 6:24-26

In what way does favoritism make one a judge? When we show favoritism we decide that we know what is worthy and what isn't. Matthew Henry says "we should not show respect for men so as to cloud or lessen the glory of our glorious Lord". How does favoritism make one a judge with evil thoughts? We prefer the outside things that are seen that make us look good whereas God looks on the heart.

Why does James make the taming of the tongue and caring for the poor the prime tests of pure religion? Why not the quality of our quiet time or worship? Both J. Vernon McGee and Matthew Henry call a religion without a tight rein on the tongue a vain religion. Its easy to put on good speech and parade about when things are going well and when it will make us look good. Matthew Henry says "In a worthless religion there is much show. When men are more concerned to seem religious than really to be so, it is a sign that their religion is worthless. In a worthless religion there is much censuring of others." The tongue can destroy life and God would give life. Is it not more important that we control our tongues and ask God for that precious wisdom that He so generously gives and thereby glorify Him and lead others to Him. Who am I to criticize others when "He picked me up out of the miry clay and set my feet upon a rock and established my goings." My quiet times and worship are important but they are important in my private life. However I also believe the more time we spend in quiet with Him the more we gain control over our tongues so the quality time is very important and the taming of the tongue is the result. If we would spend our private time thinking about God and who He I don't think we would have near the problem with the tongue. God loves the poor and if we love truly Him it will show by how much we care for the poor. Besides He cares for us and sometimes I think I am very poor in love and kindness and I need Him to care for me even though I am so poor in those areas where He is so rich and good. As always I have a lot of work to do. I remember once reading J. Vernon McGee say "I only know the thoughts of a righteous man and those are scary enough." I can relate. Can you? God Bless, Jen Numbers 6:24-26