Anniversary of the King James Bible

2011 Marks the four hundred year anniversary of the King James Bible translation done originally in 1611. Given the plethora of new translations that continue to crowd the Bible Bookstore shelves it is a testament to the splendor of the King James translation to see that it still occupies significant shelf space after all these years.

My first Bible that I studied after becoming a Christian was the King James. Most of the Scripture that I have committed to memory have that familiar King James sound to it. I have given way now to using the New King James on a regular basis but still have a sentimental attachment to the Authorized Version.

For further reading link to this excellent article by Leland Ryken
What Makes the King James Version Great?

1 Corinthians 13:1–13 (KJV 1900)
1 Though I speak with the tongues of men and of angels, and have not charity, I am become as sounding brass, or a tinkling cymbal. 2 And though I have the gift of prophecy, and understand all mysteries, and all knowledge; and though I have all faith, so that I could remove mountains, and have not charity, I am nothing. 3 And though I bestow all my goods to feed the poor, and though I give my body to be burned, and have not charity, it profiteth me nothing. 4 Charity suffereth long, and is kind; charity envieth not; charity vaunteth not itself, is not puffed up, 5 Doth not behave itself unseemly, seeketh not her own, is not easily provoked, thinketh no evil; 6 Rejoiceth not in iniquity, but rejoiceth in the truth; 7 Beareth all things, believeth all things, hopeth all things, endureth all things. 8 Charity never faileth: but whether there be prophecies, they shall fail; whether there be tongues, they shall cease; whether there be knowledge, it shall vanish away. 9 For we know in part, and we prophesy in part. 10 But when that which is perfect is come, then that which is in part shall be done away. 11 When I was a child, I spake as a child, I understood as a child, I thought as a child: but when I became a man, I put away childish things. 12 For now we see through a glass, darkly; but then face to face: now I know in part; but then shall I know even as also I am known. 13 And now abideth faith, hope, charity, these three; but the greatest of these is charity.

Proselytize an Atheist?

This Sunday we will be discussing the implications of Genesis 1:1 "In the beginning God created the heavens and the earth." This simple statement answers every worldview that is antithetical to Christianity. For example, this simple proclamation answers atheism’s claim that there is no God. There is a God and everyone knows that to be a fact. Those who deny the existence of God are suppressing this knowledge (Romans 1:18) because of their sinfulness which is described as foolishness in the Bible (Psalm 14:1 cf. Isaiah 32:6).

So if we believe that indeed there is a God should not we proclaim His existence to everyone even those who deny Him? Would not the most loving thing we could do is share Christ with those who deny Him rather than ignore them? Penn Jillette an avowed atheist and no friend to Christianity agrees!

New Testament Manuscripts

For those of you interested in seeing scans of ancient New Testament manuscripts Daniel Wallace is in the process of uploading many to the internet for public viewing. Even if you do not have a proficiency in the original languages you can still appreciate that these ancient artifacts. Remember these documents were written by hand by our Christian brothers that have preceded us. God providentially used their work to preserve and transfer the Word of God to the next generations.

Today with the relative ease of printing and the availability of the digital media it is easy to take for granted that we easily can have in our possession something that would have been a priceless treasure just a few centuries ago. I pray that we would take opportunity of the advantages that we possess in this day to read, hear, and obey the Word of God.

"I rejoice at Your word As one who finds great treasure." (Psalm 119:162, NKJV)

Visit www.csntm.org to begin your treasure hunt.

Happy New Year

One of the best New Year resolutions you can make is to read the Bible from cover to cover. There are a number of ways to accomplish this, but for the past several years I have been reading though the Bible via my email inbox. Okay, I will admit that at times I am a bit of a geek, but this has been my favorite way to read the Bible. Every morning I get up open my email and there is a selection of the Bible, an OT reading and a NT reading.
If you are into computers and email (you have to be somewhat to be reading this post) then I encourage you to consider giving this option a try. You can subscribe by the link below. The reading can be customized to give you the translation you prefer to read.
Bible in a year by email
http://studylight.org/plan/byemail.cgi

Luke 4:4 But Jesus answered him, saying, “It is written, ‘Man shall not live by bread alone, but by every word of God.’ ”

Bible in a Year - Thursday, January 1, 2009

Here is your daily Bible reading from the "New King James Version" translation.

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Genesis 1:1-31

1 In the beginning God created the heavens and the earth. 2 The

earth was without form, and void; and darkness was on the face

of the deep. And the Spirit of God was hovering over the face of

the waters.

3 Then God said, "Let there be light"; and there was light. 4

And God saw the light, that it was good; and God divided the

light from the darkness. 5 God called the light Day, and the

darkness He called Night. So the evening and the morning were

the first day.

6 Then God said, "Let there be a firmament in the midst of the

waters, and let it divide the waters from the waters." 7 Thus

God made the firmament, and divided the waters which were under

the firmament from the waters which were above the firmament;

and it was so. 8 And God called the firmament Heaven. So the

evening and the morning were the second day.

9 Then God said, "Let the waters under the heavens be gathered

together into one place, and let the dry land appear"; and it

was so. 10 And God called the dry land Earth, and the gathering

together of the waters He called Seas. And God saw that it was

good. 11 Then God said, "Let the earth bring forth grass, the

herb that yields seed, and the fruit tree that yields fruit

according to its kind, whose seed is in itself, on the earth";

and it was so. 12 And the earth brought forth grass, the herb

that yields seed according to its kind, and the tree that yields

fruit, whose seed is in itself according to its kind. And God

saw that it was good. 13 So the evening and the morning were the

third day.

14 Then God said, "Let there be lights in the firmament of the

heavens to divide the day from the night; and let them be for

signs and seasons, and for days and years; 15 and let them be

for lights in the firmament of the heavens to give light on the

earth"; and it was so. 16 Then God made two great lights: the

greater light to rule the day, and the lesser light to rule the

night. He made the stars also. 17 God set them in the firmament

of the heavens to give light on the earth, 18 and to rule over

the day and over the night, and to divide the light from the

darkness. And God saw that it was good. 19 So the evening and

the morning were the fourth day.

20 Then God said, "Let the waters abound with an abundance of

living creatures, and let birds fly above the earth across the

face of the firmament of the heavens." 21 So God created great

sea creatures and every living thing that moves, with which the

waters abounded, according to their kind, and every winged bird

according to its kind. And God saw that it was good. 22 And God

blessed them, saying, "Be fruitful and multiply, and fill the

waters in the seas, and let birds multiply on the earth." 23 So

the evening and the morning were the fifth day.

24 Then God said, "Let the earth bring forth the living

creature according to its kind: cattle and creeping thing and

beast of the earth, each according to its kind"; and it was so.

25 And God made the beast of the earth according to its kind,

cattle according to its kind, and everything that creeps on the

earth according to its kind. And God saw that it was good.

26 Then God said, "Let Us make man in Our image, according to

Our likeness; let them have dominion over the fish of the sea,

over the birds of the air, and over the cattle, over all the

earth and over every creeping thing that creeps on the earth."

27 So God created man in His own image; in the image of God He

created him; male and female He created them. 28 Then God

blessed them, and God said to them, "Be fruitful and multiply;

fill the earth and subdue it; have dominion over the fish of the

sea, over the birds of the air, and over every living thing that

moves on the earth."

29 And God said, "See, I have given you every herb that yields

seed which is on the face of all the earth, and every tree whose

fruit yields seed; to you it shall be for food. 30 Also, to

every beast of the earth, to every bird of the air, and to

everything that creeps on the earth, in which there is life, I

have given every green herb for food"; and it was so.

31 Then God saw everything that He had made, and indeed it was

very good. So the evening and the morning were the sixth day.

Genesis 2:1-25

1 Thus the heavens and the earth, and all the host of them,

were finished. 2 And on the seventh day God ended His work which

He had done, and He rested on the seventh day from all His work

which He had done. 3 Then God blessed the seventh day and

sanctified it, because in it He rested from all His work which

God had created and made.

4 This is the history of the heavens and the earth when they

were created, in the day that the LORD God made the earth and

the heavens, 5 before any plant of the field was in the earth

and before any herb of the field had grown. For the LORD God had

not caused it to rain on the earth, and there was no man to till

the ground; 6 but a mist went up from the earth and watered the

whole face of the ground. 7 And the LORD God formed man of the

dust of the ground, and breathed into his nostrils the breath of

life; and man became a living being.

8 The LORD God planted a garden eastward in Eden, and there He

put the man whom He had formed. 9 And out of the ground the LORD

God made every tree grow that is pleasant to the sight and good

for food. The tree of life was also in the midst of the garden,

and the tree of the knowledge of good and evil. 10 Now a river

went out of Eden to water the garden, and from there it parted

and became four riverheads. 11 The name of the first is Pishon;

it is the one which skirts the whole land of Havilah, where

there is gold. 12 And the gold of that land is good. Bdellium

and the onyx stone are there. 13 The name of the second river is

Gihon; it is the one which goes around the whole land of Cush.

14 The name of the third river is Hiddekel; it is the one which

goes toward the east of Assyria. The fourth river is the

Euphrates. 15 Then the LORD God took the man and put him in the

garden of Eden to tend and keep it.

16 And the LORD God commanded the man, saying, "Of every tree

of the garden you may freely eat; 17 but of the tree of the

knowledge of good and evil you shall not eat, for in the day

that you eat of it you shall surely die."

18 And the LORD God said, "It is not good that man should be

alone; I will make him a helper comparable to him." 19 Out of

the ground the LORD God formed every beast of the field and

every bird of the air, and brought them to Adam to see what he

would call them. And whatever Adam called each living creature,

that was its name. 20 So Adam gave names to all cattle, to the

birds of the air, and to every beast of the field. But for Adam

there was not found a helper comparable to him.

21 And the LORD God caused a deep sleep to fall on Adam, and he

slept; and He took one of his ribs, and closed up the flesh in

its place. 22 Then the rib which the LORD God had taken from man

He made into a woman, and He brought her to the man. 23 And

Adam said: "This is now bone of my bones And flesh of my flesh;

She shall be called Woman, Because she was taken out of Man."

24 Therefore a man shall leave his father and mother and be

joined to his wife, and they shall become one flesh. 25 And

they were both naked, the man and his wife, and were not

ashamed.

----------------------------------------------------------

Psalm 1:1-6

1 Blessed is the man Who walks not in the counsel of the

ungodly, Nor stands in the path of sinners, Nor sits in the seat

of the scornful; 2 But his delight is in the law of the LORD,

And in His law he meditates day and night. 3 He shall be like a

tree Planted by the rivers of water, That brings forth its fruit

in its season, Whose leaf also shall not wither; And whatever he

does shall prosper.

4 The ungodly are not so, But are like the chaff which the wind

drives away. 5 Therefore the ungodly shall not stand in the

judgment, Nor sinners in the congregation of the righteous. 6

For the LORD knows the way of the righteous, But the way of the

ungodly shall perish.

----------------------------------------------------------

Luke 5:27-39

27 After these things He went out and saw a tax collector named

Levi, sitting at the tax office. And He said to him, "Follow

Me." 28 So he left all, rose up, and followed Him. 29 Then Levi

gave Him a great feast in his own house. And there were a great

number of tax collectors and others who sat down with them. 30

And their scribes and the Pharisees complained against His

disciples, saying, "Why do You eat and drink with tax collectors

and sinners?" 31 Jesus answered and said to them, "Those who

are well have no need of a physician, but those who are sick. 32

I have not come to call the righteous, but sinners, to

repentance." 33 Then they said to Him, "Why do the disciples of

John fast often and make prayers, and likewise those of the

Pharisees, but Yours eat and drink?" 34 And He said to them,

"Can you make the friends of the bridegroom fast while the

bridegroom is with them? 35 But the days will come when the

bridegroom will be taken away from them; then they will fast in

those days." 36 Then He spoke a parable to them: "No one puts a

piece from a new garment on an old one; otherwise the new makes

a tear, and also the piece that was taken out of the new does

not match the old. 37 And no one puts new wine into old

wineskins; or else the new wine will burst the wineskins and be

spilled, and the wineskins will be ruined. 38 But new wine must

be put into new wineskins, and both are preserved. 39 And no

one, having drunk old wine, immediately desires new; for he

says, "The old is better."'

Reading Scripture

"Till I come, give attention to reading, to exhortation, to doctrine." (1 Timothy 4:13, NKJV)
In this passage among other things the apostle Paul admonishes Timothy to pay attention to the public reading of Scripture. In the first century and for many centuries following copies of the Word of God was scarce. Bibles were copied by hand, so not many people could afford to have a copy. So public reading of the Bible was important if people were going to grow in grace.

I could not imagine what the world in the first century must have been like. I have never counted but I am sure I have at least two dozen Bibles in my home. We take for granted our easy access to the Word of God. Unfortunately many of us do not take advantage of the resources God has given to us in our day.

Reading the Bible is essential to life. "But Jesus answered him, saying, “It is written, ‘Man shall not live by bread alone, but by every word of God.’ ”" (Luke 4:4, NKJV) For the last several years I have had my daily dose of Scripture reading delivered to my email inbox. This has been a great way to read the Bible through in a year.

Check it out for yourself by clicking on the following link. http://studylight.org/plan/byemail.cgi

My prayer for you is that you pay attention to both the private and public reading of Scripture.

Worth Every Penny

MacArthur Study Bible ON SALE NOW!






Christmas is a great time of year. According to an article I read the other day:

"Christmas generates about $435 billion worth of economic activity each year in the United States alone. But how much does the average family spend on Christmas? 2005 statistics show that the average New Zealand family spends $900. In England 43% of parents spend between $189 and 378 per child and 24% between $378 and $945. In the United States the average American will spend about $750 dollars on gifts and accessories. So for a family with two adults that is a total of $1500."

Perhaps the worst thing about all of this is that most of the items are here today and gone tomorrow. I know we will be fortunate if our children’s toys make it intact to the New Year.
An enduring gift you could give yourself or others is the MacArthur Study Bible.

Below is the description from the publisher.

"The MacArthur Study Bible is not designed to fit lifestyles, but to transform lives. This landmark study Bible brings together over 35 years of Bible study from popular Bible teacher John MacArthur, and provides extensive study helps to aid readers in understanding and teaching Scripture. It includes 20,000 study notes, an extensive concordance and an index to key Bible doctrines, multiple time lines, numerous charts, over 50 Bible maps, an outline of Systematic Theology, and more."

Some of the reasons I like this Study Bible:

1. NKJV is my primary Bible version. Most of my written work uses NKJV as the text.


2. NKJV is a literal Bible version that is very readable.


3. MacArthur Study Bible is the best study Bible. It is has extensive notes and it is written from a theological perspective that is consistent with reformed Baptists who distinguish between Israel and the church.


4. The reading of the NKJV sounds familiar to the KJV and will be an easy transition for someone that grew up using the KJV.


5. NKJV clarifies archaic words and phrases of the KJV and it minimizes the need for explanation of out of date words and phrases.


6. My Hebrew professor, James Price was the NKJV OT editor. He is brilliant humble servant of God.


7. The NKJV includes footnotes in its apparatus to reference variant readings that are included in most modern translations.

Brief history of the NKJV from Wikipedia:

"The NKJV translation project, which was conceived by Arthur Farstad, was inaugurated in 1975 with two meetings (Nashville and Chicago) of 68 interested persons, most of them prominent Baptists but also including some conservative Presbyterians. The men who were invited to these meetings prepared the guidelines for the NKJV. The New Testament was published in 1979, the Psalms in 1980, and the full NKJV Bible in 1982.

The aim of its translators was to update the vocabulary and grammar of the King James Version, while preserving the classic style and beauty of the 1611 version. Although it uses substantially the same Hebrew and Greek texts as the original KJV, it indicates where more commonly accepted manuscripts differ."

Below is the publisher’s brief statement on the NKJV:

"When considering the important factors in choosing a Bible translation — accuracy, beauty, and ease of understanding — the choice is clear. Only the New King James Version offers precision and clarity without sacrificing readability. For a Bible that is both beautifully worded and trustworthy, ideal for study, teaching, personal reading, and congregational use, the NKJV has been selected by more than 25 million customers since its release, and is the preferred translation of thousands of today's most prominent Christian leaders."