Book Review: The Open Bible from Thomas Nelson Publishers

I'm a connoisseur of Bibles. I'm also a firm believer that rightly dividing the word of truth requires diligent study. Though I prefer my Bibles to be plain, no center or margin references, no additional notations at the bottom of the pages, no glitz or "eye candy", a quality study Bible is a necessity for the serious student.

THE OPEN BIBLE SIGNATURE SERIES

The name of this study Bible, The Open Bible, is an excellent description of what it's about. This Bible is a part of the Signature Series of Thomas Nelson Bibles and is available in hardcover and bonded leather. It's 1800 pages of Bible text with a generous wealth of features and study helps.

Some of the major features are:

• The Biblical Cyclopedic Index, a detailed index of subjects with categories, subcategories, definitions, and references.
• Book Introductions and Outlines detailing the author of the book, the era of time covered by the book, the keys to the book, the key verses of the book, and a survey of the book. The outlines are very detailed.
• The Christian's Guide to the New Life giving explanations to underlined verse text.
• A Visual Survey of the Bible sandwiched between the two testaments loaded with charts, maps, and time lines.

I MIGHT BE A NITPICK!

I don't like paperback Bibles! I didn't think I could be a fan of a hardcover Bible either. I like my leather-covered Bibles but I do like how this hardcover version of The Open Bible lies flat on the desk without having to use another object to keep the pages from flipping on their own (a nitpick)!

I like my Bibles plain in the text area because I write my own references and notes within the text area of the Bibles I use to preach and teach from (another nitpick). This Bible places the references are at the end of the individual verses, which helps to make the scripture text more cohesive (I can't stand center references, another nitpick!).

I put some of the features to the test starting with a search of the word worship in the Biblical Cyclopedic Index. I soon found myself in the Christian's Guide to the New Life when I read the scripture text under Worship Commanded from the Index. The Guide bears the title, The Meaning of Worship. Then I found myself following the chain to The Expressions of Worship. I was surprised at how seamless this was and how I was drawn to follow the subject deeper (very nice!).

MY RECOMMENDATION

"Your word I have hidden in my heart, that I might not sin against You (Psalm 119:11 NKJV)."

You can't hide the Word in your heart if you don't read it. You must understand the Word to use it as a protection against sin. You must study the Word to understand it. The Open Bible will assist in opening your understanding of the Scriptures through diligent study under the anointing of the Holy Spirit.

I can easily recommend this version of a study Bible to the new student of the Word as a first Bible. I can recommend it as a reference tool to the intermediate and advanced student of the Bible.

I received this book free from Thomas Nelson Publishers as part of their BookSneeze.com book review bloggers program. I was not required to write a positive review. The opinions I have expressed are my own. I am disclosing this in accordance with the Federal Trade Commission's 16 CFR, part 255: "Guides Concerning the Use of Endorsements and Testimonials in Advertising."

Rules of Engagement by Derek Prince: A Review

Our battle is not with flesh and blood. We wrestle against powers and rulers of darkness. We must take on the whole armor of God to endure the battle.

Rules of Engagement, Preparing for Your Role in the Spiritual Battle is a textbook to be used in the classroom to prepare for battle. It's a battlefield manual providing information at hand in the heat of the battle. This is an updated and expanded version from the late Derek Prince.

THE RULES OF CHARACTER AND PREPARATION

Spiritual warfare is about character. Rules of Engagement, Preparing for Your Role in the Spiritual Battle is a book about character. It begins with building character and finishes with living character.

Christians are at war and the enemy fights for total destruction. The outcome of the war is eternal. Preparation is the message of this book. Author Derek Prince gives excellent instruction and advice to the warrior preparing to take his or her place on the battlefield of the Lord.

THE REVIEW

Rules of Engagement, Preparing for your Role in the Spiritual Battle is divided into four parts:

• Building A Soldier's Character
• Holy Spirit Training
• Battle in the Heavenlies
• Enduring to the End

and each chapter concludes with questions which provoke you to think about your answers. The book is abundant with illustrations from Scripture.

This is the first book I have read by Derek Prince. I've heard him quoted often but have never read anything written by him. This book provides a fresh look at an old subject. The author does an outstanding job in offering clean insights which helps to bring clear understanding about the battle Christians are engaged in. The writing is engaging and easy to read.

MY CONCLUSION

Stay in the Word. Again, Rules of Engagement, Preparing for Your Role in the Spiritual Battle starts with building character and concludes with living character. This is character transformed by the Holy Spirit into the character of Jesus Christ. 2 Corinthians 4:17-18 speaks of looking at the things we cannot see and how they are eternal. It is character which allows us to see the unseen. I quote Derek Prince from the book: "Those things are the things that are eternal. They do not change. They are in the Word."

Stay in the Word. I recommend this book highly for any seeking to understand and to be equipped to take his or her place on the spiritual battlefield.

I received this book from Chosen Books. I was not required to write a positive review. The opinions I have expressed are my own. I am disclosing this in accordance with the Federal Trade Commission's 16 CFR, part 255: "Guides Concerning the Use of Endorsements and Testimonials in Advertising."

THE POWER OF PROPHETIC BLESSING by JOHN HAGEE

Can you have the prophetic blessing? What is the prophetic blessing? Can it be passed from generation to generation? Is the prophetic blessing only for the Jews and Israel? If you can have it then how do you get it?

John Hagee answers these questions and many more in his book The Power of the Prophetic Blessing, An Astonishing revelation For A New Generation.

THEN GOD BLESSED THEM

The Power of the Prophetic Blessing starts with the first blessing given to humanity recorded in the Bible. It then proceeds to the blessing given by God to Abram. Then comes the blessing given by Isaac to Jacob. The book then leads us to the command of God to Moses concerning the priestly blessing, "This is the way you shall bless the children of Israel."

It is the three promises of this priestly blessing which lay the foundation of the prophetic blessing and its application to you and I. Author John Hagee clearly details the power of the prophetic blessing and how we can apply it to our lives and to the generations to come.

MY THOUGHTS ON THE POWER OF THE PROPHETIC BLESSING

This is my first review of a John Hagee book. I am thrilled at the opportunity to do so. John Hagee writes with a fluid style, each concept flowing clearly and cleanly into the next. This makes The Power of the Prophetic Blessing easy to read.

The author goes into great detail in presenting the prophetic blessings of Jesus given in the sermon on the mount. We know them as the beatitudes. John Hagee titles these eight prophetic blessings of Jesus as The Secrets of the Good Life. The case in made soundly for the scriptural basis for the prophetic blessing and the command we have to pass it on.

I must say this book has touched my life and it will touch the lives of my children and my grandchildren. It is one thing to be a hearer of the Word, and another to do the Word. The Power of the Prophetic Blessing is biblically based and in order for the blessing to transform our lives, we must believe it, receive it, and do it.

RECOMMENDATION

The Power of the Prophetic Blessing is real. John Hagee does an excellent job explaining it and detailing the need of humanity to receive it and pass it to the next generation.

I highly recommend The Power of the Prophetic Blessing to anyone desiring to know more about it and how to apply it to life.

I received this book free from Handlebar Marketing. I was not required to write a positive review. The opinions I have expressed are my own. I am disclosing this in accordance with the Federal Trade Commission's 16 CFR, part 255: "Guides Concerning the Use of Endorsements and Testimonials in Advertising."

Garden of Eden, Place of Protected Pleasure

Courtesy stock.xchng/thesaint

I've been doing a lot of studying lately on various topics. Somehow I keep getting drawn to Genesis and the Garden of Eden. The events which took place in the garden still affect mankind today. Good and evil, believe it, or don't believe it, are still affecting us. We will feel the effects of what took place in Eden tomorrow, next week, next year, till we take our last breath.

Back to the Garden of Eden

It's not so much what took place there that leads me to write this article. It's the biblical meaning of the words garden and Eden and how these meanings can be applied to us today.

• garden: from the Hebrew gan meaning garden (as fenced). The word comes from a primitive Hebrew root meaning to hedge about or protect.
• Eden: the name Eden is from a Hebrew word which means pleasure or delight.

We can thus say the Garden of Eden was a protected place of pleasure. The inhabitants of the garden lived in perfection in a place of perfect, protected pleasure. Sounds idyllic doesn't it?

From the Garden of Eden to Unprotected Displeasure

I won't recount the story of the fall in the Garden of Eden. I won't get into the how and the why of it. The fall happened and we must deal with its effects every day of our lives. We experience pain, sorrow, anxiety, stress, fear. We are surrounded by violence, terror, natural disaster, and evil.

The idea of a protected place of pleasure seems far-fetched at best. We think of it. We dream of it. Yet our personal Eden seems to slip further away with each moment. It doesn't have to. Really.

No, all of the problems of this life will not go away. Yes, we will still experience anxious moments, bow under the weight of stress, and fear for our tomorrows. But what if I tell you there is a way to get back into that perfect protected place of pleasure? Are you interested?

Back to the Garden of Eden, the Place of Protected Pleasure

The ancient prophet of Israel, Isaiah says it like this: "Thou wilt keep him in perfect peace, whose mind is stayed on thee: because he trusteth in thee (Isaiah 26:3)."

Matthew Henry defines the perfect peace of Isaiah 26:3 as "inward peace, outward peace, peace with God, peace of conscience, peace at all times, under all events."

Are you starting to get a picture of the Garden of Eden, a place of protected pleasure? We may not achieve such a physical place in this life yet, at the same time, it is still attainable. How?

Jesus says: "Peace I leave with you, my peace I give unto you: not as the world giveth, give I unto you (John 4:27)." Jesus Christ, through his death on the cross of Calvary (see Colossians 1:20), gives us the place of protected pleasure. He fulfills Isaiah 26:3 perfectly.

Jesus speaks of the Comforter, the Holy Spirit (John 4:16) who would come in the name of Jesus (John 4:26). Do you ever wonder why Jesus calls the Holy Spirit the Comforter?

It is this Comforter by taking up residence in you which gives you access to the peace given by Christ Jesus. Anybody wish to question the concept of comfort bringing peace? You do have access to the place of perfect protected pleasure, your personal Garden of Eden, through the indwelling Holy Spirit.

You can access your place of protected pleasure as much as you want, whenever you want. Repent. Make a conscious decision you wish to change your life by turning away from sin. Be baptized in the name of Jesus for the remission of, the washing away of your sin. Receive the gift of the Holy Spirit, the Comforter, the source of everlasting access to your personal Garden of Eden.

One Big Thing by Phil Cooke

Is there a purpose for your life? A specific goal you wish to accomplish? Are you a fresh college graduate looking for purpose? Maybe you're like me, middle-aged, beaten and tired from chasing illusion after illusion.

It's the title of this book, One Big Thing, Discovering What You Were Born to Do which catches my attention. Author Phil Cooke offers wisdom and practical guidance to those seeking the answer to the questions, "Why am I here?" and "What am I supposed to be doing?"

The Message Behind One Big Thing

There is a nagging sensation within each of us leading us to question why we are here and to what we are to be doing with our time here. What One Big Thing, Discovering What You Were Born to Do will not do is answer those questions! You and only you can answer them.

What author Phil Cooke does do in this book is point you, the reader in the direction you need to go to discover the answers. He closes the introduction to the book with some questions:

• What is it that makes you come alive?
• What excites and empowers you?
• What were you born to do?
• How can you get that message out there?

And, in the final sentence of the introduction, "Let's go find some answers."

Discovering the Answers to Your One Big Thing

What! I thought we were finding answers! We are. You will. I love the format Phil Cooke uses throughout the book. He asks questions, lots of questions. Chapter 8 lays out the map for your future. How? With more questions!

• What comes easy to you?
• Do other people confirm it?
• What do you love?
• What are you willing to risk?
• What drives you crazy?
• What do you want to leave behind?

The author laces the book with quotes which reinforce the questions pointing you to think about your answers. You will begin to visualize your one big thing as you begin to seriously think about and answer the questions.

Again, I love the format of question upon probing question the author uses in One Big Thing, Discovering What You Were Born to Do. Phil Cooke shares from his wealth of experience in asking you, the reader the right questions to provoke you to think and think deep.

This was a book I read in two sittings. Each chapter, each question led me to the next question, to the next chapter. I was led to reflect on my past experiences, my present situations, all of it through the questions asked of me in this book.

You're Not Crazy

You're Not Crazy is the title of the epilogue of One Big Thing, Discovering What You Were Born to Do. The sensation that I am crazy for following my one big thing is indeed real. Yours may be too. But how will you ever know if you don't follow your one big thing?

This book will not tell you your one big thing. But if you are desiring to find it, then I recommend reading this book by Phil Cooke highly. Now, I am off to work on my one big thing!

I received this book free from Thomas Nelson Publishers as part of their BookSneeze.com book review bloggers program. I was not required to write a positive review. The opinions I have expressed are my own. I am disclosing this in accordance with the Federal Trade Commission's 16 CFR, part 255: "Guides Concerning the Use of Endorsements and Testimonials in Advertising."

What! Is God Too Safe?

What is it you and I say of the Lord God? "He is my refuge and my fortress; my God, in Him I will trust (Psalms 91:2)?" We are safe in God, but how safe is our God? Is your God too safe? Think about it for a minute or two, then read on.

Pastor, freelance writer and author, Mark Buchanan provides a look into the answer of this question in his book Your God Is Too Safe, Rediscovering the Wonder of a God You Can't Control.

WHAT! HOW CAN GOD BE TOO SAFE?

Your God Is Too Safe opens with a chapter entitled The Refuge of the Stuck. It's about Borderland, the place between two borders and why we may choose to be stuck there. Borderland is familiar. It's safe.

Mark Buchanan wastes no time in going after this concept of a God who is too safe. Over and over he exposes our comfortable ideas and concepts of who and what God is in the light of Scripture.

The writing of Your God Is Too Safe is engaging and easy to read. The material the author presents is designed to make you think and react to who and what you believe God is and desires for you.

ARE YOU LIVING IN BORDERLAND?

"Who is the god of borderland?" Mark Buchanan asks. He answers with, "the god who is too safe." It didn't take me long into the book to realize I have spent a large part of my life living in borderland. Chapter after chapter, case after case, the author lays out clearly how we get stuck in borderland and often why we choose to remain there.

Part Two of Your God Is Too Safe opens with a chapter called The Place of Holy Habits. The case is made for the absolute necessity of prayer becoming a holy habit. I found myself under conviction for my own lack of a holy habit of prayer.

Your God Is Too Safe was a little slow getting into, though once into it, the intensity increased dramatically. I read all of Part Two, Life In the Holy Wild, without putting the book down!

I found myself challenged to seek God for who He is and for what He is. I found myself hungry to step out beyond borderland into the holy wild. One quote from Your God Is Too Safe I will always remember is this: "Consumption is killing us. Go fast and live." Again, think about it.

GETTING OUT OF BORDERLAND

If you're stuck in a rut, bored with your life in Christ, Your God Is Too Safe is a good book to jog and jab you out of your comfort zone. I recommend this book to any desiring the expectancy of walking with Christ, looking to escape from borderland.