The Truth About the Lordship of Christ

 It has been a while since I have had the privilege to read on a regular basis. But the time became available here recently. Now, I love reading any kind of book with a Christian undertone. And, lately I have been viewing quite a few video clips of the teaching and preaching of John MacArthur. I know my pastor references him quite a bit, so I decided to check out some of his books. This is the first book by MacArthur that I have read, and enjoyed it so much I read it in two days. Which I believe is a record for me. Anyway, here is a review of his book, The Truth About the Lordship of Christ.  

Synopsis 
This book explores the doctrine of the Lordship of Christ, and how we should respond to his holiness. It starts with a detailed view of the biblical proof of what Lordship is, and explains what is means that He is the Lord of the Universe and the Lord of Our lives. The rest of the book is a look at how we are to respond to His Lordship. It expounds on the necessity of submission to His authority, holy living, confession, restoration, and the ultimate destination of humankind. He ends the book with certain statements of faith that define what a true christian must believe. I really enjoyed reading this book. But, not only using it as an interesting topic to read about, but as a study tool. I love the fact that everything that the author talks about, he backs it up with scripture. And not just one verse, but many examples of how the bible explains these topics. I also likes the way that he also gives examples of the opposite lifestyle. He shows the differences in the lives of those who are truly saved, and those that are not. He makes the case for the bible and does it in a simple manner that anyone can understand. I think this would be a wonderful book for any Christian to read, to strengthen their knowledge of the bible, as well as any other book by this author. I will definitely continue reading his work myself.  

About the Author
Widely known for his thorough, candid approach to teaching God's Word, John MacArthur is a popular author and conference speaker and has served as pastor-teacher of Grace Community Church in Sun Valley, California, since 1969. His pulpit ministry has been extended around the globe through his media ministry, Grace to You, and its satellite offices in seven countries. In addition to producing daily radio programs for nearly 2,000 English and Spanish radio outlets worldwide, Grace to You distributes books, software, audiotapes, and CDs by the author. He is the president of The Master's College and Seminary and has written hundreds of books and study guides, each one biblical and practical.

If you get a chance, I urge you to read this book.

Thanks for reading, and God Bless You all this week!

This book was provided me free from the publisher by BookSneeze.com blog book reviewers program. I was not required to write a positive review. The opinions I have expressed are my own. 

Who is Jesus?

You have no idea how excited that I am that school will be out soon. It is the last week of exams, and graduation is on Monday next week. I do not believe that the students understand how we as teachers need the summer break just as much, if not more than they do. As I prepare for this summer, I am looking ahead to some good intensive bible study of my own. I figure, I will have all this free time, what better way to spend it than to dive into the Word of God. Not just to read, but to study, and break down scriptures to gain a better understanding of the will of God. Now, do I dive right in? No, not really. Just like I do on the soccer field with my athletes, I need a good warm up. As I wrote about last week in my post Unless You Believe, I was involved in a witnessing workshop with a dear brother Marty Minto. From what I learned, I am resolved to change the way I witness. But, in order to do that, I need to spend a great deal more time in the Word. I need to spend more time on the Gospel of Christ and His salvation.

The most important question to be asked is who is Jesus? I know, it seems a little weird to ask this question. You would think that most people have heard of Jesus. But, how do we know? Have we ever really asked that question to someone to see what their answer would be? I did here recently, and here are some of the responses that I got. 1. "He is the guy we learn about at church." 2. "He is the leader of Christianity." 3. "He is a good buddy of mine." 4. "He is the Son of God, Savior, Messiah." Do the first three answers surprise you? Do you think that they "really" know who Jesus is? So, who is He? Let's check the Bible.

Jesus asked the same question in the bible.

Matthew 16:13
"Now when Jesus came into the district of Caesarea Philippi, He was asking His disciples, “Who do people say that the Son of Man is?”"

The following are a list of things people, at His time, thought He was.

1. A resurrected prophet. Matthew 16:14 - " And they said, “Some say John the Baptist; and others, Elijah; but still others, Jeremiah, or one of the prophets.”"

2. A carpenter's son with brothers and sisters. Matthew 13:54-56 - "He came to His hometown and began teaching them in their synagogue, so that they were astonished, and said, “Where did this man get this wisdom and these miraculous powers? Is not this the carpenter’s son? Is not His mother called Mary, and His brothers, James and Joseph and Simon and Judas? And His sisters, are they not all with us? Where then did this man get all these things?”"

3. He was a lunatic. Mark 3:20-21 - "And He *came home, and the crowd *gathered again, to such an extent that they could not even eat a meal. When His own people heard of this, they went out to take custody of Him; for they were saying, “ He has lost His senses.”"

4. He was a good man/liar. John 7:12 - "There was much grumbling among the crowds concerning Him; some were saying, “He is a good man”; others were saying, “No, on the contrary, He leads the people astray.”"

5. He was possessed. John 10:19-21 - "A division occurred again among the Jews because of these words. Many of them were saying, “He has a demon and is insane. Why do you listen to Him?” Others were saying, “These are not the sayings of one demon-possessed. A demon cannot open the eyes of the blind, can he?”"

But who is He really? He IS God!
Hebrews 1:8
"But of the Son He says,“ Your throne, O God, is forever and ever, And the righteous scepter is the scepter of His kingdom."

John 1:1-3;14
"In the beginning was the Word, and the Word was with God, and the Word was God. He was in the beginning with God. All things came into being through Him, and apart from Him nothing came into being that has come into being.....And the Word became flesh, and dwelt among us, and we saw His glory, glory as of the only begotten from the Father, full of grace and truth."

John 5:17-18
"But He answered them, “My Father is working until now, and I Myself am working.” For this reason therefore the Jews were seeking all the more to kill Him, because He not only was breaking the Sabbath, but also was calling God His own Father, making Himself equal with God."

John 8:23-24;58
"And He was saying to them, “ You are from below, I am from above; you are of this world, I am not of this world. Therefore I said to you that you will die in your sins; for unless you believe that I am He, you will die in your sins.”.....Jesus said to them, “Truly, truly, I say to you, before Abraham was born, I am.”"

John 10:30-33
"I and the Father are one.” The Jews picked up stones again to stone Him. Jesus answered them, “I showed you many good works from the Father; for which of them are you stoning Me?” The Jews answered Him, “For a good work we do not stone You, but for blasphemy; and because You, being a man, make Yourself out to be God.”"

John 14:23
"Jesus answered and said to him, “ If anyone loves Me, he will keep My word; and My Father will love him, and We will come to him and make Our abode with him."

And there is so much more! Some of this I learned from my brother Marty, and some on my own research on the subject. But as for the rest, it will have to wait until a later post. This is just the start of my studies. As I learn more, I will share more. It is my prayer that this will aid in your understanding of who Jesus is, and help you in your daily witness.

Thanks for reading, and God bless you all this week!