The BIBLE VIEW #1012 — What Are You Doing With God’s Word?

In This Issue:
Lessons Realized While Picking Blueberries
In One Ear and Out into the Fire
Forgotten Treasures

Volume: 1012   August 4, 2025
Theme:  What Are You Doing With God’s Word?


Lessons Realized While Picking Blueberries
Bill Brinkworth

We can see examples of biblical principles all around us.  We should expect to find these visual “parables” because the God who preserved His written Word for us is also the same One who created all in this universe.  He has not left you on your own.  He wants you to see and follow His way, and there are many ways to see it.

While picking blueberries from my sprawling bushes, I related many situations of that job to principles about our handling of God’s Word.  I was reminded that:

  • Although you think you picked all the juicy berries in front of you, when you look back at where you have already plucked, you find you missed some.  Often, they are hidden behind leaves or branches that shield them when picking from another direction.

    This brought to mind the many times I have read certain scriptures, but their principles were not understood at the time or were not relevant to me when I first read them.  However, when in need of specific godly advice, the same verse can be looked at from the angle of need, and it becomes a light or solution to a situation one is currently facing. 

    When the Bible is read, we may not always find something that applies to our lives at the time, but when it is needed, God allows us to understand His advice.
  • Sometimes good fruit has fallen off the bush and lies wasted at the base of the tree.  We often read the Bible with other things on our minds and miss God’s advice that could help us. 
  • Unharvested, ripe fruit laying at the base of bushes also pictures godly direction that one never bothered to glean from God’s preserved, Road-map for life.  Solutions to problems are close at hand, but the pages of the Bible are not opened to find them.
  • Sometimes berries have rotted or have been ruined by nibbling birds.  Too often, we read something in God’s Word and believe it means what we were previously told it meant.  We fail to study what other Scriptures say about the situation and believe in unusable, untrue doctrines.
  • Sometimes a strong wind came and blew much of the fruit off the tree.  Those wasting winds are like many false teachings that have been heard.  They invalidate the truth and value of God’s Word, causing people to pay no mind to the Bible’s advice.  Untrue statements like “A bunch of old men wrote the Book, and it is not what God said,” “There are errors in the Bible, and it cannot be trusted,” and “ Different versions say it better” convince too many to ignore the Bible’s truths.
  • Sometimes, intermingled among the branches, a wild, thorned blackberry bush manages to grow.  Among delicious blueberries, blackberries are tempting fruits, but they are not blueberries.  However, when picked, one gets scratched, and annoying chingers cause tremendous itching.  For the next few days, one regrets being tempted to pick those non-blueberries because of the painful scratches and the insect bites.

    Likewise, Christians who get sidetracked from doing God’s will and way by some unscriptural temptations many times regret straying from God’s direction for them.  Too often, wrong acquaintances, watered-down Bibles, unbiblical doctrines, and involvement in sin get one off-course from God’s direction, and it causes much regret.


Life certainly is not a bowl of blueberries.  There is not much easy-picking, and it requires much work and discernment.

Read and study God’s Word.  Pay attention to every Word because one day you will need His wisdom.  Do not be distracted by philosophies, opinions, or popular trends if they do not align with what is taught in the Bible.  God does not desire you to go through life without His help.  His Way is there for you to follow.  Read and apply His Truths.

In One Ear and Out into the Fire
Bill Brinkworth

God gave His Word to the prophet Jeremiah (Jeremiah 36).  It was shown in hopes that the people of Israel, when they heard how their sin would be judged and punished by God, would repent and stop their wickedness.  That is always the first desire of God.  He does not want any to perish.
“The Lord is not slack concerning his promise, as some men count slackness; but is longsuffering to us-ward, not willing that any should perish, but that all should come to repentance.” II Peter 3:9

Baruch, Jeremiah’s scribe, heard the Words from Jeremiah and recorded them on a scroll.  For an unspecified reason, the prophet was not allowed in the Temple.  Jeremiah commanded Baruch to read it, in his place, to an array of princes.  Fear struck the listeners, and they immediately wanted the king to hear God’s judgment by hearing the words of God.  “Surely, as they were touched and convicted, so will the king be,” they must have thought.

Jehudi was selected to read the prophetic words to the king.  Instead of being grieved and burdened as he heard a few pages read, the king cut them up with his penknife and threw them into the fire.  As more were read to him, he did likewise.  Soon, all the Words given to Jeremiah were destroyed.

Just ignoring the Words, however, did not lessen his responsibility to deal with the warnings.  As for the Word, it was simply rewritten, and today we have all the same Words that Jeremiah was given, plus some additional truths Jeremiah added.  God could preserve His Word then, and He is still doing it today in the preserved King James Bible for English-speaking people, despite all that man is trying to do to dilute His truths.

What is interesting is to see how these men handled what was heard.  The prophet heard, knew their source, and knew they were valuable to share with others so they could divert a terrible fate.  He knew how many would react, but he still made sure others had the opportunity to hear God’s Words as he had.  Today’s Christians should have a similar burden to want others to listen to the truths as taught in God’s Word.  If we do not tell others, who will?

The princes heard the same words and were afraid of what was prophesied to happen.  They too wanted another to hear it.  I am sure they were hoping their leader would help change the situation so God would not judge their nation.

The king reacted like so many do today.  He heard the words, was not convicted or disturbed, and burnt them up.  He did not do with the Truths as God intended.

Destroying or ignoring the truths from the Bible is certainly going on today.  God’s Word is ridiculed and demeaned.  We hear all the “arguments,” which include:

  • “Only the weak believe it.” However, are we not all “weak”?  Most do not recognize their weaknesses – yet!  I heard this defense from a man who was on his fifth marriage, and he is a young man.  He just does not see where he is failing, perhaps because he is comparing himself to other “weak” persons around him, and does not seem as “bad” as others.  If he and others would compare themselves to what the Bible says about their condition, actions, and sins, they might see a truly different picture of themselves.
  • “It is filled with errors.” People often say that, but most cannot give an example of an “error”.  The majority who have given the Bible open-minded study have concluded that there are no errors.

    Years ago, one website offered thousands of dollars as a reward to anyone who could find errors in it.  They never gave one cent of reward because no one could find a mistake.  None of the big talk about contradictions and errors proved true when they were challenged.  I have found that many who claim this excuse have never even read it for themselves, or have formed an opinion before they even read some of it.
  • “It’s too hard to understand.” Actually, the majority of the King James Bible is at a fifth-grade level.  The difficulty in reading and understanding it depends on whether or not the Holy Spirit of God is in the reader’s heart.  God’s Spirit is the only One that can allow anyone to understand it.
  • “It’s not important.” This is the excuse many use for not even attempting to read it.  It is shocking to know how few have read it at all, and even fewer that have read it from cover to cover — even amongst Christians!
  • They do not want to hear it.  They have already purposed in their heart not to obey the highest Authority.  This was the case of the king in Jeremiah 36.  He, like so many others, had his plans as to how he wanted to live his life and did not want any authority telling him how to live it.  It is when people realize their way does not work that they turn to God’s way and allow Him to lead them in the direction He desires for them.

How are you handling the Word of God?  Is it so precious to you that you are burdened to share it with others, no matter what it costs you in popularity, friendships, and others’ opinions about you?

 Are you believing every Word and trusting its Author, even though you may not initially understand it all?  Are you asking and allowing the Spirit of God to help you know His Word?  Are the truths within the pages of God’s Word so important to you that you make the effort to read and obey them, or are you allowing it to go in one ear and out into the fire as the king did, and not letting God’s Word influence and direct your life?  Read God’s Word and let Him show you His truth.

“… For unto whomsoever much is given, of him shall be much required: and to whom men have committed much, of him they will ask the more.” Luke 12:48



Forgotten Treasure
Dr. Edmond

A man once entered a home in Germany and found it very wretched — no fire, no furniture, no food.  Everything bore the appearance of utter poverty.  Glancing around, he saw, in a neglected corner, a copy of the Bible, and when he went away, he said to the poor tenants, “There is a treasure in this house that would make you all rich.”

After he had gone, the people began to search the house for what they thought must be a jewel or a pot of gold, and found nothing.  They dug up the floor in hopes of discovering the hidden store of wealth.  Their labors were all in vain.  One day, the mother lifted the old Bible, and found written on the flyleaf these words, “The law of thy mouth is better unto me than thousands of gold and silver.” (Ps. 119:72)

“Ah!” she said, “can this be the treasure the stranger spoke of?”  So, she shared her thoughts with the rest of the family.  They began to read the Bible and were transformed in character, and the blessings of God came to stay with them. 

The stranger came back to find poverty gone, contentment and peace in its place, and a hearty Christian welcome.  With grateful joy, the family told him, “We found the treasure, and it has proved all that you said to us it would.”

“A man may read the numbers on a sundial, but he cannot tell the time of day unless the sun shines on the dial.  We may read the Bible over and over, but we cannot learn its purpose or words until the Spirit of God shines into our hearts.” — T. Watson 

The BIBLE VIEW #1011 — Love

In This Issue:
Real Love: Having Charity
Lust Never Satisfies
Undying Love 
The Right Motive

Volume: 1011   July 28, 2025
Theme:  Love

Real Love: Having Charity
Bill Brinkworth

Love is an emotion that we all need to be happy.  It is the strong affection a child has for his parents, the fondness parents have for their child, the bonding relationship between husband and wife, and the feeling a person has for another.  Although one of the most important emotions for mankind to be healthy, it is the one feeling that is most misunderstood and confusing to many.

Seekers of love seek it in the wrong places, and when they do experience it, they are often confused by the emotion.  People sometimes confuse lust with love, confuse selfishness with love, and sometimes even confuse responsibility with the emotion.  Real love is not what one can demand from another.  It is not bought; it is given.

Real love is often referred to as “charity” in the Bible.  Charity is described simply in I Corinthians 13:3-8:

  • I Cor. 13:3:  “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.” Prior to this verse, many of the gifts God gave to members of the early church, before they had the written Word of God, were mentioned.  Many of those gifts would fade away.  One gift that would not be taken away was the gift of charity.
  • I Cor. 13:4: “Charity suffereth long,
    Love doesn’t quit.  It continues and endures.
  • and is kind;
    Love is not mean, but is kind!
  • charity envieth not;
    Love does not cause a person to get jealous of another.
  • charity vaunteth not itself, is not puffed up,”
    Love does not make one brag about oneself, or make one think he is better than another!
  • I Cor. 13:5: “Doth not behave itself unseemly,
    Love doesn’t think bad thoughts (indecent) about another.
  • seeketh not her own,
    Love does not prompt one to care about another solely for what they can gain from them.
  • is not easily provoked,
    Love for another person does not easily allow one to get mad at them.
  • thinketh no evil;
    Love does not allow one to see the bad in another.
  • I Cor. 13:6: “Rejoiceth not in iniquity,
    Love does not allow one to be happy when another is sinning.
  • but rejoiceth in the truth;”
    Love is happy when the other tells the truth, and when friends are honest with each other.
  • I Cor. 13:7: “Beareth all things,
    Love puts up with a lot.
  • believeth all things,
    Love believes what the other person says, no matter what is suspected.
  • hopeth all things,
    Love wants the best for another.
  • endureth all things.”
    Love does not stop!
    I Cor. 13:8: “Charity never faileth: but whether there be prophecies, they shall fail; whether there be tongues, they shall cease;”

The love described in these verses is not the one portrayed in most movies.  It is not the temporary emotion that produces a “love” relationship several times a month.  It is an emotion, given to people by God, and it is characterized by tolerance, resilience, forgiveness, and unity.  It is real love!

“Love meets the needs of the loved object.”   — Gary Bane

Lust Never Satisfies
Bill Brinkworth

James 4 discusses a sin that has robbed many of an opportunity to be fully satisfied.  It has also robbed many of the joy they could have had.  At times, it has often left some feeling “emptier” than they were previously.  This rampant sin, as do all iniquities, gets man further away from God than they would ever imagine.  It is the sin of lusting that is examined in this chapter.

One’s longing desire for many of the world’s tempting offerings is often an attempt to meet spiritual needs in one’s life with worldly things.  One will never be truly fulfilled that way.  Always more will be needed as one’s carnal appetite increases.  

Lust for power and riches has caused the deaths of unfathomable numbers in war (James 4:2).  No matter the earthly treasure gained, still the insatiable hole in one’s soul remains unfilled (James 4:3).

Covetous actions are identified as sin in the Bible.  Attempts to ask God for things that involve them in things God does not want them to have in the first place will not be granted (James 4:2-3).  

The lust for what the world has is identified as spiritual adultery (James 4:4).  For the Christian, lusting for what the world offers is “cheating” and not being faithful to the one who created and saved one, and who knows what one should have in his life.

In attempting to acquire all that the world has to offer, the coveter is disregarding something more important.  They may have accumulated much of what this world offers in goods and social standings, but in so doing, they may have become an enemy of God.  An enemy of God will never have joy or peace.
“… whosoever therefore will be a friend of the world is the enemy of God.” James 4b

Perhaps, because of being in the world, we sometimes think too much like the unsaved.  That may be why most battle the sin of covetousness.  

Many have forgotten, or may never have learned, that God has an entirely different value system than the unsaved do.  Our creator knows what will help and what will hurt us.  We do need many of the things in the world to survive, but there often comes a point when one forgets the difference between a “need” and a “want.”

God will provide all our needs.  If we seek Him first, He will meet our needs and many of our wants (Mat. 6:33).  Resist the temptation to be like the unsaved (James 4:7).  We are on the winning side!  Why should we desire what the losing side has?

When we draw close to God, He will draw close to us (James 4:8).  When He is close to us, we will have a better relationship with Him and develop the mindset He wants us to have.  We will ask for what we need properly (James 4:3), and He will provide all that the Christian needs.  None of God’s children will ever be without what God deems necessary for them (Psalms 37:25).

“The best things in life are not things.” — Author Unknown

Undying Love
Dr. Southey, 1871

They sin who tell us love can die:
With life all other passions fly,
All others are but vanity.
In Heaven, ambition cannot dwell;
Nor avarice in the vaults of Hell;
Earthly these passions of the Earth,
They perish where they have their birth;
But love is indestructible.
Its holy flame forever burneth,
From HHeaven it came, to Heaven returneth;
Too oft on Earth a troubled guest,
At times deceived, at times opprest,
It here is tried and purified,
Then hath in Heaven its perfect rest.
It woeth here in toil and care,
But the harvest time of love is there.

“And walk in love, as Christ also hath loved us, and hath given himself for us an offering and a sacrifice to God for a sweet smelling savour.” Ephesians 5:2

The Right Motive
Walter Knight

Hudson Taylor was examining some young people who had volunteered for the mission field.  He wanted to ascertain their qualifications for the arduous life they were seeking.

“And why do you wish to go as a foreign missionary?” he asked one.

“I want to go because millions are perishing without Christ, not having even heard of the One name whereby the lost may be saved.” Others gave various answers.  Then Hudson Taylor said, “All of these motives, howsoever good, will fail you in times of testing, trials, tribulations, and possibly death.  There is but one motive which will sustain you in trial and testing, and that is “For the love of Christ constraineth us; …” II Cor 5:14. (“Constrain”: force, compel, confine)

The BIBLE VIEW #1010 — Prayer

In This Issue:
The Situation Was Impossible, BUT …
They Denied Giving God His Due Credit
Reasons Why Prayer May Not be Answered
Be Grateful! 

Volume: 1010   July 21, 2025
Theme:  Prayer

Sunday School Teachers & Preachers: There are hundreds of free lessons at http://www.openthoumineeyes.com/lessons.html and http://www.devotionsfromthebible.com/.  One commentary for each New Testament chapter can also be used for lessons at http://www.openthoumineeyes.com/blog/.  You can be assured that all material uses only the KJV (most other Sunday School material from other companies cannot claim that)!

The Situation Was Impossible, BUT …
Bill Brinkworth

Peter’s future did not look too promising as he lay in a dark, dank prison cell.  Acts 12 describes his unpleasant position further by detailing that he was chained to guards on either side of him, was unclothed, was locked in a prison with other security outside his chamber, and was facing a death sentence from Herod.  No one would ever have suspected he would leave that jail alive.  Then a hopeful word came into the story.  It is a word that usually indicates that things are going to change.  The word is “but” (Acts 12:5), and the situation did change.

Things changed in Peter’s gloomy situation because praying Christians got God involved.  The impossible was made possible.  Guards were not disturbed; however, shackles fell off the prisoner, an angel got involved, and prison doors flung open on their “own” accord.  Out walked Peter, a free man!

Just as the situation was changed for Peter when others started praying, things can change today when God’s people start praying.  People with illnesses have been cured by prayer.  Fearful and dangerous situations have been transformed into peaceful ones when petitions were sent to our heavenly Father.  Drunken, runaway parents have had their lives changed and salvaged by the prayers of their loved ones.  Continuous supplications have gotten God involved in putting marriages back together.  Prayer has prompted God to do miracles at jobs, to help financial situations, to mend relationships, to fix broken things, and countless other “hopeless” situations.

For Christians, calling on God in prayer can transform any situation.  It should be our first line of defense in battling the troubles we face in this life.  There is always hope when God is involved.  There is nothing God cannot do when a Christian calls on his Father for help!

“Children of God — please call home.  Your Father is waiting!”

They Denied Giving God His Due Credit
Bill Brinkworth

God had done an incredible miracle and healed a man who was crippled from birth in Acts 14.  Paul was the vessel through which God enabled the man to stand and walk by faith.

Then a shocking thing happened.  When the people saw what Paul had been used to do, they immediately gave credit to their false gods!  They attributed Paul to being Mercurius (Mercury), the Roman god of commerce.  They thought Barnabas was Jupiter, the Latin name for the false god, Zeus.  To make matters worse, the priest of Jupiter soon arrived, bringing them gifts, and wanted to make a sacrifice to the false gods (Acts 14:13).

Needless to say, when the two men of the true God heard how God’s work had been interpreted and credited to false gods, they were shocked.  Barnabas and Paul “rent their clothes”, which was how the Jewish culture at that time showed great distress and disappointment.  They immediately went among the crowd trying to explain to the people who the real God was.

Many times, we see God’s mighty hand at work in a situation.  We know it is answered prayer and are amazed at what He has done.  However, it is not long until we hear the ungodly crowd see it completely different.

I remember when Florida was faced with a hurricane that was headed directly for the southwest portion of the state.  All weather projections had it going straight through the state and doing much damage. 

The hurricane got closer and closer.  It was inevitable that the state would be clobbered.  Windows were boarded up.  People left the threatened area.  Dark clouds and winds arrived.  At the last minute, the hurricane turned 180 degrees and headed away from land and went out to sea.

Christians were elated.  They knew God had done the impossible — again.  Almost immediately, the weather broadcasts attributed it to some scientific weather anomaly.  They would not give credit where credit was due.  They failed to recognize God’s intervention.  Perhaps, it was for the same reason that the crowd who saw Paul’s and Barnabas’ experience was blinded.  It may have been because they were raised without the knowledge of God, and therefore, did not know Him or what He was capable of doing.

Unfortunately, I believe our world today is in a similar position as it was in Paul’s day.  Many people have been programmed and raised without any knowledge of God: His creation, His history with the people of the world, and His workings.  When something supernatural does occur, they explain it away with the only “religion” they do know: humanism, science, or other false religions they have been exposed to.

Man always has to have an answer for what happens.  If they are not trained properly or shown God’s truths, they will devise their own explanations.  That is why, as Christians, it is so important that we fill the void of understanding that an ungodly world has with the truths from the Word of God.

“A coincidence is when God chooses to remain anonymous.”
— Author Unknown

Reasons Why Prayer May Not Be Answered
Bill Brinkworth

Many do not have what they need from God because they:

Do not ask Him.
“Ye lust, and have not: ye kill, and desire to have, and cannot obtain: ye fight and war, yet ye have not, because ye ask not.” James 4:2

Ask improperly, often selfishly. 
“Ye ask, and receive not, because ye ask amiss, that ye may consume it upon your lusts.” James 4:3

Are separated from God’s help because of sin.  
“If I regard iniquity in my heart, the Lord will not hear me:” Psalm 66:18
“Thou hast covered thyself with a cloud, that our prayer should not pass through.” Lam. 3:44  Also: I Kings 8:35, Jer. 11:14, Psalm 80:4, Isa. 45:20, Isa. 59:1-2, Lam. 3:8.

Ask the wrong “god”.  “Assemble yourselves and come; draw near together, ye that are escaped of the nations: they have no knowledge that set up the wood of their graven image, and pray unto a god that cannot save.” Isa. 45:20

Are praying for a situation in which God will not intervene.
“Therefore pray not thou for this people, neither lift up cry nor prayer for them, neither make intercession to me: for I will not hear thee.” Jer. 7:16

Are hypocritical: “And when thou prayest, thou shalt not be as the hypocrites are: for they love to pray standing in the synagogues and in the corners of the streets, that they may be seen of men.  Verily I say unto you, They have their reward.” Mat.  6:5

Are not sincerely seeking God: “Woe unto you, scribes and Pharisees, hypocrites! for ye devour widows’ houses, and for a pretence make long prayer: therefore ye shall receive the greater damnation.” Mat.  23:14

Without meaning they repeat the same prayer over and over.  “But when ye pray, use not vain repetitions, as the heathen do: for they think that they shall be heard for their much speaking.” Mat.  6:7


Be Grateful!
Bill Brinkworth

After passing through Samaria and Galilee, Jesus healed ten lepers (Luke 17:11-17).  In the account, only one turned back and thanked Jesus, and gave God the credit. After being healed of a debilitating disease that severely disfigured their bodies and made them social outcasts, one would expect that all would be grateful.  Perhaps they were, but only one expressed his gratitude.

We dare not ridicule them, because many praying Christians have been ungrateful for what God has done for them. 

We pray.  We beg God to deliver us from the clutches of a disease or deliver us from a hopeless situation, and He does.  How many times did we forget to thank the Lord for His miracles and answers to prayer?

Sometimes, perhaps because we did not ask God specifically how to answer our prayer request, we fail to see that He has answered it.  Unless the answered prayer is gift-wrapped and dropped out of Heaven with a note “From God, with Love”, we often write the prayer fulfillment off as a “coincidence”.

Here are some suggestions as to how to be more grateful for answered petitions:

  • Thank the Lord for the answered prayer when you originally told Him your need.  By faith, assume He will answer it.  Sometimes the answer will be, “Not now, later”, or “No.”  Many times, it may not be the way you expected it to be answered, but there will always be an answer to a Christian’s request.
  • Write your prayer requests on a piece of paper.  Pray daily for them, and when they are answered or no longer needed, put a mark next to them.  Soon, a marked paper will clearly show you that God is working and answering your prayer requests.
  • Pray daily for the need.  Doing this will show God how urgent it is to you, and will make you aware that it is still a need you asked Him to help you with.  When you no longer have to pray for it, you will be reminded that it is He who has met your need.

God does answer the prayer requests of Christians who seek His help.  Have you thanked God for His answers to your prayers, or are you like the nine, unthankful lepers?

“When in doubt, give God the glory [credit].”

The BIBLE VIEW #1009 — Hard Times

In This Issue:
Reasons for Hard Times
Difficulties One Can Face
Different Temptations
Health Problems

Volume: 1009   June 16, 2025
Theme: Hard Times

Sunday School Teachers & Preachers: There are hundreds of free lessons at http://www.openthoumineeyes.com/lessons.html and http://www.devotionsfromthebible.com/.  One commentary for each New Testament chapter can also be used for lessons at http://www.openthoumineeyes.com/blog/.  You can be assured that all material uses only the KJV (most other Sunday School material from other companies cannot claim that)!

Reasons for Hard Times
Bill Brinkworth

Everyone has difficulties and tribulations at one time or the other.  There is no promise from God that believers are exempt from having hardships.  Ordeals still rain on “the just and on the unjust” (Matthew 5:45).

It does not necessarily mean that a person facing some misery is out of the will of God.  Jesus healed a man of blindness in John 9.  Jesus’ disciples asked Him if the man’s blindness was because of some sin he or his parents had committed.  

Christ responded that there was another reason for the man’s infirmity.  It was so God could get the glory in healing the man.  God certainly was honored when the man was able to see.
“Jesus answered, Neither hath this man sinned, nor his parents: but that the works of God should be made manifest in him.” John 9:3

There can be many other reasons why a person may be going through hard times.  According to God’s Word, they can include:

  • To move a person to where God wants him or to change that person for future use, as in the story of Joseph.
  • To strengthen a person, as in the story of Job.
  • To separate a person from things God wants him separated from, as in the story of Noah.
  • To teach a person a lesson he needs to learn, as in the stories of Jonah and David.
  • To get that person close to and reliant on God, as in the story of Lazarus.

Not all trials are God’s wrath on a person.  Much of the time, life’s difficulties are a loving God’s intervention in a person’s life for their best!

“Your disappointments may be God’s appointments.”

Difficulties One Can Face
Bill Brinkworth

When we get saved, we are expected to serve the Lord who saved us.  We are not to sit and just soak up God’s goodness. 

We should do as the  Lord commands us: to go and tell others the messages from God’s Word, spiritually feed ourselves, have a relationship with the Lord, and do whatever else the Lord lays on our hearts.  To some, these seem to be simple tasks, but many know those “simple” things can cause us a lot of grief when we try to do them.

The Scripture in Matthew 10 tells the disciples that Jesus had just explained their responsibilities.  They were warned that it would not be easy to tell others what they had learned from Christ. 

Although it was addressed to the disciples reaching Israel, there is much that they faced that if we try to live and do right, we can also expect to deal with, including persecution and resistance.  Here are some of the things that we can expect in our lives if we strive to be good Christians and do what we are told:

  • Some will not receive the message of the Scriptures (vs. 14).  Not everyone will jump for joy when they are told what the Word of God says.  We probably were not excited the first time we heard the truths from God’s Word either.
  • There will be problems from the “religious.”  Not everyone who has a “form of godliness” is a Christian.  It was a religious group that tried the hardest to silence Christ.  They did not want anyone exposing that their “religion” was contrary to what was taught in the Bible (vss. 16-17).  

    Many of the “religious” today also do not want to hear the truth.  They choose to believe only their traditions and interpretations.
  • The secular government will oppose many efforts to reach the world with the government of God.  After all, many government officials think their rules and laws are what the world needs.  They do not understand how a good Christian life can solve man’s needs and problems.  The government was much involved in Jesus’ murder.
  • There may be conflicts in a family when a member gets saved and lives differently than one did before (vs. 21).
  • A Christian may be hated for how he lives (vs. 22).  It’s amazing how the world “understands” and tolerates criminals, but those living right often get more criticism and hatred than those purposely doing wrong. 

    Perhaps it is the godly example that convicts and troubles their consciences.  The only way they can silence their troubled convictions is to get rid of the messenger rather than change themselves!

It was difficult for these men to stand and live for Christ.  It is not easy today, which is probably why so many do not do it.  Many quit when the going gets tough!  One cannot “quit” being a Christian if one is one.  He can only stop being a good testimony of a living God.

“Following God’s directions are the only way to get safely home.”

Different Temptations
Bill Brinkworth

James, who many believe to be the brother of Jesus, gives practical advice in his writing in James 1. One of the most sensible and oft-visited situations for all people, including believers, is discussed here.  The “good” side of going through difficulties is examined in verses 2-6.

James identifies the difficulties, trials, and enticements all face as “divers temptations.”  Although most initially shudder at even the thought of going through different problems, James exposes what can be positively gained by going through our individual “valleys.”  Instead of agreeing on how terrible it is to have problems, James encourages Christians to “… count it all joy when ye fall into divers temptations;” (vs. 2).

How could anyone be joyful when facing joblessness, heartaches, financial problems, family problems, or the thousands of difficulties we all face in our lifetime?  James tells us we can be “joyful” because:

  • The trying of our faith during the hard times builds our patience (vs. 3).  Since there usually is not much we can do but wait until the trial passes, we learn to patiently wait and trust in the Lord during those hard times.
  • The practical lessons on patience we learn build a good Christian into a “tested” believer.  Most of us have some person in our life that we have observed as more spiritual than ourselves.  We are often amazed at how cool, calm, and patient they are when they face difficulties. 

    They did not wake up one morning and decide to be patient for the rest of their lives.  They got that way because they went through hard times, got close to God, and saw that His help was sufficient to deliver and guide them.  The next time they faced an unfavorable situation, they remembered all He had done in the past and did not get frazzled.  Their learned patience (vs. 4) built their character and trust in the Lord.
  • When we go through a “temptation,” we go to the Lord in prayer more than we ever had before.  In doing so, we get closer to the Lord, see how He supplies wisdom on handling our trial (vs. 5), and have the potential to increase our faith.

Trials and tribulations are not something anyone desires to go through, but after going through many of them and drawing close to God during those times, we can learn that they are not so bad.  The valley of “temptation” can be joyous as our God guides us through the treacherous pathways. 

“… for this day is holy unto our Lord: neither be ye sorry; for the joy of the LORD is your strength.”  Nehemiah 8:10

Health Problems
Bill Brinkworth

Paul was a man used greatly by God.  With God’s helping hand, that evangelist survived shipwrecks, beatings, persecutions, imprisonments, and other ill-treatment.  With God’s miraculous help, that man was used in healings, revivals, and many miracles.  However, as used of God as he was, Paul still had a personal ailment (II Cor. 12:7)

Commentators have strained at attempting to name Paul’s “thorn in the flesh.”  God has chosen not to make it clear to us what it was.  

No matter what it was, Paul made it clear that it was an infirmity he faced.  Three times Paul pleaded with God to remove the malady from him (II Cor. 12:8).  God’s answer was “…My grace is sufficient for thee: for my strength is made perfect in weakness …” (II Cor. 12:9).

Here was a man who had seen glorious things in the third Heaven (II Cor. 12:2-4) and had been delivered from many horrible things, yet God wanted Paul to experience this physical problem.  God could have easily healed his body, but His answer was that God’s grace was enough for him to live with the problem and that Paul’s infirmity would be a vehicle to make him spiritually stronger.

If God would allow one of His great spiritual warriors to face such a battle, we should not be surprised if we face problems.  As with most trials, we can do one of two things when going through testing.  We can either shake our fists at God and be angry with him, which is not the wise thing to do when we need Him the most, or get close to Him and rely on Him to get us through the struggle.

Paul chose not to be foolish and get angry at God.  He decided that if God allowed him to go through the problem, he would have a good attitude about it (II Cor. 12:10) and give Him the glory.  In doing so, Paul learned exactly what God wanted him to get out of the situation: that when he was weak, he was the strongest through God’s help (vs. 10)!

“Some cry, ‘Why me?’ when they go through a trial.  My question to them is, ‘Why wouldn’t it be you?  Are you something special that you are the only person in the world that shouldn’t have problems or sicknesses?’”

The BIBLE VIEW #1008 — Jesus

In This Issue:
He Paid Our Ransom
No Other; Just Jesus
The Lord Will Provide!
He Heard His Request

Volume: 1008   May 26, 2025
Theme: Jesus

If you like The BIBLE VIEW, you will most likely look forward to receiving  The Daily View, a free daily devotion.  Sign up (https://lp.constantcontactpages.com/su/a26cc9M), and you will be e-mailed a link to read or HEAR a KJV chapter and a short commentary (200-700 words) of something taught in the day’s reading.  The e-mail will include a mini-sermon in pictures, a prayer list, Thought for The Day, a Bible study, and short articles reinforcing biblical principles.

He Paid Our Ransom
Bill Brinkworth

“For even the Son of man came not to be ministered unto, but to minister, and to give his life a ransom for many.” Mark 10:45

Sometimes, we take our salvation for granted after being saved for a while.  The joy of escaping Hell may have “worn off”, and as we go through another day, we say, “Ho hum, I’m saved, but what’s the big deal.”

Reading Mark 10:45, I saw six words that reminded me how special and blessed I am to be saved.  Those words are “… his life a ransom for many.”

To renew your excitement about your salvation (if you are saved), think for a minute what a ransom is.  When a crime is committed, and a person is kidnapped, sometimes the kidnappers try to make money.  They offer a person the opportunity to rescue the snatched person for a high price.  Often, they warn that if their requests are not met, the person will never be seen again and will probably be murdered.

The kidnappers do not go to a person that hates the one they took.  They send a message to someone who loves the abducted person so much that they would give anything to get that person back.

Jesus was reminding us here that we are all kidnapped by sin, and unless someone had paid the price, all would have perished; they will spend an eternity in Hell!  It is a sad, sad truth that we are all Hell-bound because of our sins.

In this case, the ransom required to save someone from a terrible end was not money or possessions.  The only payment that would be acceptable was the blood of a sinless person.

Now, the good news!  There is one who loves you so much that He would pay the price to save you.  It just so happens that He is the only one qualified as sin-free.  He was willing to pay the ransom with His life for yours.  Jesus, God’s only Son, stepped forward, willing to pay the price.  Not only was Jesus willing to be a ransom for you, but He is also willing to pay everyone’s sin debt to all who ask Him.

Now, how can anyone not be excited about salvation after that realization?  There is someone who loves you so much that He will rescue you from an eternity in Hell if you ask Him.

Jesus, thank you so much for what You have done for us!

No Other, Just Jesus
Bill Brinkworth

“For there is one God, and one mediator between God and men, the man Christ Jesus.” I Timothy 2:5

What fantastic news, as recorded in I Timothy 2:5, it must have been to the Jews who were familiar with Old Testament worship.  Before Jesus’ death on the cross, they could not go directly to God themselves.  They had to have priests go to God as middlemen for them.  After the sacrificial death of Christ, they could go to God themselves by praying (I Tim 2:1).

However, then and even today, there are still many who believe they cannot go to God themselves.  Those folks still, if they realize it or not, attempt to worship the way it was done in Old Testament times. 

Some still go to a “priest” in a confessional and tell him their sins.  With his words and by doing what he tells them to do, they believe the “priest” can order their sins to be forgiven.  They are trusting the man to be their mediator between them and God.  

There are also those who pray to the dead.   Others murmur prayer needs to deceased biblical characters, in hopes that “person” can be the middle man between them and God to have their sins forgiven or requests granted.

Sincere as those people are, what they are doing is contrary to the teaching of the Scriptures.  I Timothy  2:5 tells us there is only one mediator between us and God, and that is Jesus Christ.

We no longer have to present a perfect, unblemished animal sacrifice for the high priest to take through the temple’s curtain to the Holiest of Holies.  When Christ died, God ripped the veil in two from the top to the bottom.  Now, any believer can go to God in prayer through Jesus Christ.

Telling a priest, parent, or another person one’s sins will not remove the consequences of one’s iniquity.  Those people may want to help, but they, too, are sinners needing a mediator.  Going to anyone other than Christ to meet a need in one’s life or receive help from God will not result in God answering one’s requests.  

The only one who is qualified to go to the Father on our behalf is His Son, Jesus.  He is the only mediator between God and man.

“Well, my friend, today we have a Mediator — the Lord Jesus Christ.  Jesus can because He is God.  He is able to save to the uttermost, and He has paid the price for our salvation.  He is a Mediator because He has also become a man. 

“Jesus can hold my hand.  He understands me.  He understands you.  You can go to Him, and He will not be upset with you.  He will not lose His temper, strike you, or hurt you… He still loves you and wants to put His arm around you.”  — J. Vernon McGee

The Lord Will Provide!
J. Newton

Though troubles assail, and dangers affright,
Though friends should all fail, and foes all unite
Yet one thing secures us, whatever betide,
The promise assures us the Lord will provide.

The birds, without barn or storehouse, are fed.
From them, let us learn to trust for our bread.
His saints what is fitting shall ne’er be denied,
So long as ‘tis written, “The Lord will provide.”

When Satan appears to stop up our path,
And fills us with fears, we triumph by faith;
He cannot take from us (though oft he has tried)
The heart-cheering promise, “The Lord will provide.”

Satan tells us we’re weak, our hope is in vain.
The good that we seek we ne’er shall obtain;
But when such suggestions our graces have tried.
This answers all questions, the Lord will provide.

No strength of our own, nor goodness we claim;
Our trust is all thrown in Jesus’ name.
In that strong tower for safety we hide;
The Lord is our power; the Lord will provide.

When life sinks apace and death is in view,
The Word of His grace shall comfort us through.
Not fearing or doubting, with Christ on our side,
We hope to die shouting, “The Lord will provide!”

“He that feeds His birds will not starve His babes.”  — Matthew Henry

He Heard His Request
J. G. Wilson

A lady, who had just sat down to breakfast, had an intense urgency in her heart to instantly carry a loaf of bread to a poor man who lived about a half mile from her house.  Her husband wished her either to postpone taking the loaf of bread until after breakfast or to send someone else to deliver it to the man.  She chose to immediately take it herself.

As she approached the small hovel, she heard a voice.  Desiring to listen to what was being said, she stepped softly.  She heard the poor man praying, and among other things, he said, “O Lord, help me!  Lord, Thou wilt help me.  Thy providence cannot fail.  Although my wife, myself, and children have no bread to eat, and it is now a whole day since we had any, I know Thou wilt supply.”

The lady could wait no longer; she opened the door.  “Yes,” she replied, “God had sent you relief.  Take this loaf, and be encouraged to cast your care upon Him who careth for you, and when you ever want a loaf of bread, please come to my house.”

“Bread for today is bread enough.” — E. M. Bounds

The BIBLE VIEW #1007 — A Christian’s Testimony

In This Issue:
We’re Not Perfect, Just Forgiven
Many Will Always Find Fault
Walking As He Walked
Won by His Wife’s Faith
Our Duty to Our Neighbors

Volume: 1007   May 26, 2025
Theme:  A Christian’s Testimony

If you like The BIBLE VIEW, you will most likely look forward to receiving  The Daily View, a free daily devotion.  Sign up (https://lp.constantcontactpages.com/su/a26cc9M), and you will be e-mailed a link to read or HEAR a KJV chapter and a short commentary (200-700 words) of something taught in the day’s reading.  The e-mail will include a mini-sermon in pictures, a prayer list, Thought for The Day, a Bible study, and short articles reinforcing biblical principles.

We’re Not Perfect, Just Forgiven
Bill Brinkworth

“And they watched him, whether he would heal him on the Sabbath day; that they might accuse him.” Mark 3:2

In Mark 3:2, the Son of God had come down to mankind and healed many who were sick and possessed.  Instead of lining the streets and having a ticker-tape parade to show their gratitude, they watched Him carefully to see if they could find Jesus doing something wrong.  The crowd that usually was looking for Him to fail was composed of “religious” folks.

Today is no different.  If it happened to the Son of God, then Christians can certainly expect similar treatment today.  When someone hears we are a Christian, they carefully observe our lives.  If they find us doing something wrong in their eyes, they gleefully point and sneer, “Some Christian he is” or “Hypocrite!”

Well, they can look all they want, and if they look long and carefully enough, they will find us doing something wrong. We still have the same flesh we were born with that will still sin if we let it.  A Christian certainly is not perfect, just forgiven.

We are imperfect and will make mistakes; nevertheless, we should always try our best to exemplify Christian behavior.  There will always be some watching how we go through hard times, how we react when others do us wrong, what we do when we are tempted, and how we live.  It is interesting how the observers may have no interest or experience in living for the Lord themselves, but somehow they think they know how we should live.

We have a tremendous weight on our shoulders.  The scorners and scoffers should be reading their Bible and examining their lives compared to what God requires of us all, but they usually do not.  They scrutinize our testimonies for the Saviour instead.

Quite often, they look for us to fail so that they can write off any conviction they may have for their ungodly lifestyle or for even their attempting to obey Scripture.  When they think we have failed, they feel justified for living as they do.  However, they are usually unaware of the biblical principle, “So then every one of us shall give account of himself to God.” (Romans 14:12. Also: Matthew 12:36).  Everyone will ultimately give an account of himself.  No one’s shortcomings can be a valid excuse for another’s wrongdoing.

Not only can our lifestyle not be an excuse for someone not to live a godly life, but rather, it should be an example of how to live a godly life.  The world is confused and distraught.  They often see that their ways do not work.  They are looking for a way to live a better life.  Are you being the example they would want to follow to have a closer relationship with God and to have a better life?

“For we dare not make ourselves of the number, or compare ourselves with some that commend themselves: but they measuring themselves by themselves, and comparing themselves among themselves, are not wise.” II Cor. 10:12

Many Will Always Find Fault
Bill Brinkworth

“For John came neither eating nor drinking, and they say, He hath a devil.  19 The Son of man came eating and drinking, and they say, Behold a man gluttonous, and a winebibber, a friend of publicans and sinners.  But wisdom is justified of her children.” Matthew 11:18-19

You surely have heard the saying, “You can’t please all the people all the time”.  It certainly is true, especially in living for the Lord.

John the Baptist experienced much criticism.  Jesus noted of the prophet that there was none greater than John was (Mat. 11:11), yet that godly man was accused of being demon-possessed (Mat. 11:18).  Jesus, the sinless Son of God, was also charged with being gluttonous and a drunkard (Mat. 11:19) among other criticisms.

If those great spiritual giants were wrongly accused and poorly spoken of, we Christians should not be surprised when things are twisted around, and we are talked about negatively.  Here are some thoughts to remember when your reputation is being questioned:

  • If it is true, then we have some apologizing and changing to do.
  • If it is not true, consider the source of the rebuke.  In John the Baptist’s and Jesus’ case, it was people that Jesus considered immature “children” (Mat. 11:16).  Is the one speaking ill of you someone with great discernment or someone in the flesh and not being led spiritually?
  • If they are seeing things incorrectly or not hearing both sides of the situation (Pro. 18:13), it is their error, not yours.
  • Some spoke negatively of Jesus.  How could we expect better treatment than God’s only Son?

It is impossible to please all the people all the time!

“Live so you wouldn’t be ashamed to sell your parrot to the town gossip.”
— Author Unknown

Walking As He Walked
Bible Readings for the Home

  • The way of the Christian was set for us by Jesus himself.
    “He that saith he abideth in him ought himself also so to walk, even as he walked.” I John 2:6
    “For even hereunto were ye called: because Christ also suffered for us, leaving us an example, that ye should follow his steps:” I Peter 2:21
  • The footprints that Jesus set for us to follow lead unvaryingly along the way of God’s commandments.
    “If ye keep my commandments, ye shall abide in my love; even as I have kept my ather’s commandments, and abide in his love.” John 15:10
    “For this is the love of God, that we keep his commandments: and his commandments are not grievous.” I John 5:3
  • The pathway is the same today as when Jesus walked in Judea.
    “Jesus Christ the same yesterday, and to day, and for ever.” Heb. 13:8



Won by His Wife’s Faith
C. H. Spurgeon

I have read the story of a man who was converted to God by seeing the conduct of his wife in an hour of trouble.  They had a lovely child, their only offspring.  The father’s heart doted on it perpetually, and the mother’s soul was knit up in the heart of the little one.  The child lay sick upon its bed, and the parents watched it night and day.  At last, it died.

The father had no God.  He tore out his hair.  He rolled upon the floor in misery, wallowed upon the earth, cursed his being, and defied God.

There sat his wife, as fond of the child as possible, and though tears came, she gently said, “The Lord gave, and the Lord hath taken away; blessed be the name of the Lord.”

“What!” he said, “You love that child!  I thought that when that child died, it would break your heart.  Here I am, a strong man; I am going mad.  Here are you, and yet you are strong and bold.  Tell me what it is that possesses you?”

She answered, “Christ is my Lord.  I trust in Him.  Surely, I can give this child to Him who gave Himself for me.”

From that instant, the man became a believer.  “There must,” he reasoned, “be some truth and some power in the Gospel which could lead you to believe in such a manner under such a trial.”

“Our example is the only Bible which millions of people read today.
— James E. Murray



Our Duty to Our Neighbors
C. H. Spurgeon

An infidel once met a Christian and said, “I know you do not believe your religion.”

“Why?” asked the Christian.

“Because,” said the unsaved man, “for years, you have passed me on my way to my house of business.  You believe, do you not, there is a Hell, into which men’s spirits are cast?”

“Yes, I do,” said the Christian.

“And you believe that unless I believe in Christ, I must be sent there?”

“Yes.”

“You do not, I am sure, because if you did, you must be a most inhuman wretch to pass me, day by day, and never tell me about it or warn me of it.”

“If you want your neighbor to see what Christ will do for him, let him see what He has done for you.”  — H. Beecher

The BIBLE VIEW #1006 — Serving God

In This Issue:
Is It My Life? 
Obeying God
Gifts for Today’s Christians

Volume: 1006   May 19, 2025
Theme:  Serve the Lord!

If you like The BIBLE VIEW, you will most likely look forward to receiving  The Daily View, a free daily devotion.  Sign up (https://lp.constantcontactpages.com/su/a26cc9M), and you will be e-mailed a link to read or HEAR a KJV chapter and a short commentary (200-700 words) of something taught in the day’s reading.  The e-mail will include a mini-sermon in pictures, a prayer list, Thought for The Day, a Bible study, and short articles reinforcing biblical principles.

Is It My Life?
Bill Brinkworth

“Is it not lawful for me to do what I will with mine own?  Is thine eye evil, because I am good?” Matthew 20:15

Does a Christian have the right to do whatever he wants with his life?  According to God’s Word, no!
“Nay but, O man, who art thou that repliest against God?  Shall the thing formed say to him that formed it, Why hast thou made me thus?  Hath not the potter power over the clay, of the same lump to make one vessel unto honour, and another unto dishonour?” Romans 9:20-21

The context in Matthew 20 is the millennial reign when Christ rules Earth for 1,000 years.  It gives one an idea of what will happen during that time and how some will be rewarded. 

In Jesus’ illustration, he told of how workers starting at different times of the day got paid what the master thought was fair.  All were paid the same, whether they worked 10 hours or one hour.  The “boss” was doing the hiring, and all agreed to work for what he offered them.  The whole point of the illustration was to teach that the master was in charge, and it was by his rules they had to abide.

Although Matthew 20:15 was the reply of the landowner doing the hiring, it holds a great truth in describing a Christian’s relationship with the Lord.  A Christian is not his own.  We are purchased with Christ’s blood.  We have a promise of Heaven.  Everything after getting saved is a bonus!  Let us surrender our lives and do with our lives what God would have us do!

When adults are asked what they want to do in their future, they usually tell you what they have figured out they would like to have happen with their lives.  When a child is asked the same question, you similarly get a battle plan that he would like to see happen.  Seldom does one answer, “Whatever the Lord wants me to do, I’ll do!”

Sadly, that open-invitation to do God’s will is rarely even thought of by Christians.  Unfortunately, when you hear of people handing their lives over to God without any reservations, it is often only after they have tried it their way, and that way failed.

It would save much heartache and much of a “wasted” life if one would immediately, after one is saved, hand one’s life over to God as a signed, blank check to God.  “Fill it in with what you want me to do God, and I will gladly, happily, and faithfully do it until you tell me otherwise!”  Boy, would that attitude change lives and Christendom as we know it!

“Take my life, and let it be
Consecrated, Lord to Thee;
Take my hands and let them move
At the impulse of Thy love
At the impulse of Thy love.”
 — Excerpt from Frances Havergal’s hymn, “Take My Life, and Let It Be”



Obeying God
Bill Brinkworth

In the introduction to his second letter to the Corinthian church (II Corinthians 1), Paul tells part of the secret of his success.  The preacher was used of God because it was the “will of God” (vs. 1).

I say “part of his secret” because there was another factor not mentioned here, although Paul’s testimony throughout the New Testament made it clear what it was.  It was God’s will that Paul, the one-time enemy of God and His people,  got saved, became an apostle, and was used by God.  It was critical that the preacher allowed himself to be used by God and did what God showed him to do.

This distinction between “God’s will” and obeying God’s commandments is very important.  After being saved by trusting in Jesus’ work for them on the cross, most have a purpose in God’s mind.  None of us are saved to sit and soak up God’s goodness.  There is a spiritual war raging in this world (Ephesians 6:12), and it is always God’s will that each soldier of God participates in the battle.

I believe everyone is convinced and convicted of God’s will for them, at least once.  The tugging spirit of God sometimes makes all feel guilty of involvement in sin.  Many hear that “voice” encourage them to be saved.  At times, they feel uncomfortable in their lifestyle and desire to change.  Some do heed God’s encouragement to get them to do His will.  Unfortunately, too many ignore it.

The encouragement of the Holy Spirit of God is soon not even listened to.  They did not do God’s will, and eventually, because they chose not to obey it, the “voice” of the Holy Spirit no longer “speaks” to them.  They never get used of God because they had chosen not to obey Him previously.

Paul ignored the “pricks” (Acts 9:5) of the Holy Spirit for a long time.  He ignored God’s true calling for him as he watched his acquaintances kill the first martyr for Christ.  Paul closed his ears to the cries and pleas of the Christians he had killed and persecuted. 

One day, however, God’s will was clear to Paul.  He heard the voice of the Son of God on the Damascus road, and he obeyed what Jesus told him to do.  His life was different after that decision, and the world has never been the same because of his obedience.

God’s will for every one of us is to do something for Him.  This, sadly, does not happen in too many cases.  Many get saved.  Some obey for a while.  God has great plans to use them, but because of some act of disobedience, they never get used in the way God intended.  The key to ever being used effectively by God, as was true in Paul’s life, is obedience to what one is shown to do.

It is God’s will that all that are saved serve Him.  It is not His will that we disobey Him by putting off or ignoring what He has placed in our hearts to do.  We can also have effective lives for Christ’s cause if we obey God’s will for our lives!

“The will of God will not take you where the power of God cannot keep you.”



Gifts for Today’s Christians
Bill Brinkworth

 God has plans for every Christian.  To better equip each child of God, each is given a gift to serve the Saviour.  Some may have more than one gift.  These are not the gifts the early church had before they were given the Word of God.  These seven gifts (Romans 12: 6-8) are necessary to get the work of God done in today’s world.  They include the gifts of:

  1. Prophecy.  This is not the same ability Old and New Testament prophets and Christians had.  We have the entire plan of God in His written, preserved Word of God.  We do not need to foretell the future as they did earlier.  Today’s gift of prophecy is taking the Word of God and helping others understand it better.  In his 1828 dictionary, Noah Webster defined the gift as the ability “to preach; to instruct in religious doctrines; to interpret or explain Scripture or religious subjects …”
  2. Ministry.  This God-given gift puts a great burden on a Christian to meet the needs of others.
  3. Teaching.  This is a gift that allows one to help others understand the things of God better.
  4. Exhorting.  This vital gift helps one be an encourager to others  — a most needed gift, especially among God’s people.
  5. Giving.  This gift gives one the burden of meeting other’s needs by giving of things and themselves.
  6. Ruling.  This gift allows one to be a leader.  Too many think they have it, but few have the God-given ability to lead God’s people.
  7. Mercy.  This gift gives one a heart to have understanding, patience, and kindness with others.

If you are a child of God, God does not plan for you just to sit.  He desires that you serve Him and help others.  He has given you at least one of the above gifts for this church age.  What are your gift/gifts, and are you using them to help others, honor God, and bringing others to know and serve the Lord better?

Additional Reading on This Subject:  God’s Toolbox (https://www.openthoumineeyes.com/lessons/toolbox.html)

The BIBLE VIEW #1005 — Trust the Lord

In This Issue:
An Unreliable Foundation
Give God the Rudder

Volume: 1005   May 11, 2025
Theme:  Trust the Lord!

If you like The BIBLE VIEW, you will most likely look forward to receiving  The Daily View, a free daily devotion.  Sign up (https://lp.constantcontactpages.com/su/a26cc9M), and you will be e-mailed a link to read or HEAR a KJV chapter and a short commentary (200-700 words) of something taught in the day’s reading.  The e-mail will include a mini-sermon in pictures, a prayer list, Thought for The Day, a Bible study, and short articles reinforcing biblical principles.

An Unreliable Foundation
Bill Brinkworth

The central Italian city of Pisa has many popular tourist sites.  Many come to see the University of Pisa, which was first started in 1343.  Others flock to the Piazza del Duomo (Cathedral Square) to see the famous white, marbled cathedral, baptistery, and the tilting bell tower.  Of all that the city has to show, none is more memorable and curious than the Leaning Tower of Pisa, or as a 1929 Scientific American article named it, the “Sinking” Tower of Pisa.

The tower was begun in August of 1173 A. D., of which they are sure.  Many of the other details are vague because they are not documented.  Who the architect was is not clear, as at least three different times, the project was resumed and then halted.

Many believe that the tower’s tilting had been discovered by the completion of the third story.  Because of battles and possibly because of the discovery of its inclination, construction was halted.  Soft river valley sediments, sand, and clay did not support its weight, and the building began leaning.  A temporary bell was placed on the third story.

There, the semi-finished building lay, year after year, halted before it was completed.  I am sure it was a laughing stock for many.

“Hey, Luigi, see that unfinished tower those foolish builders left.  Such lack of planning.  It was a waste of money and materials, and what an eyesore.  If they had only spent the time wisely on a firm foundation on which to build,” may have been the conversation of the past.

Some later levels tried to compensate for the five-degree tilt by building them off-center, on the true vertical.  Upward the white, marbled structure’s construction went.  Over the next one hundred years, construction was started and stopped.  It is believed the belfry was completed in 1350, as one of the bells in the tower is dated.

Still, the campanile leans.  All the planning, ingenuity, and decoration did not solve or even hide the problem that the building tilts more than 17 feet from its perpendicular and continues to tilt at a rate of ¼ an inch per year.

Man still has not given up.  Many attempts have been made to stop its leaning.  In the 1930’s, cement was injected through pipes inserted under the tower in hopes that the foundation would be strengthened and the leaning would cease.  The tilting continued.

Attempts were made to tie it together with cables to keep it intact.  Numerous restoration projects were begun and then discontinued.

Plans for the structure’s righting are vast.  Some call for jacking the building up six feet on one side and moving the 14,700 metric tons to a new concrete base.  The more sure method would be to dismantle the eight stories and start construction over on a thick, firm foundation.

How many lives in the past have been erected similarly?  Instead of building a life on the Rock of Ages, the Lord Jesus Christ and around the firm foundation of the Word of God (our preserved KJV Bible), people try various ways, plans, and fads to live their lives.  They spend their entire lives compensating for a life that was not founded on a firm foundation from the beginning.  Their efforts are hopeless if they are not in line with God’s plan and method.

Lives have been directed by the advice of strangers, family, television talk shows, and even from movies.  Newspaper columnists and others’ beliefs have probably directed more lives than would ever be known.  Man-made unbiblical religion has also misdirected many.

All kinds of techniques have been tried to stop problems.  Today, there are drugs to try to solve the issues of weight loss, nervousness, lack of attentiveness, feelings of loneliness, and other of life’s problems.  The hope is in a pill to fix a problem.  Psychologists’ and psychiatrists’ advice is followed, no matter how extreme or illogical it seems.  Man’s attempts to right a tilting life usually fail.

Few of these people ever seek to get the advice from their Creator, who has raised millions upon millions of children.  Father knows best, but He is rarely sought for direction, or His word followed for guidance.  No wonder so many lives are slanting to an inevitable destruction.
“Therefore whosoever heareth these sayings of mine, and doeth them, I will liken him unto a wise man, which built his house upon a rock: And the rain descended, and the floods came, and the winds blew, and beat upon that house; and it fell not: for it was founded upon a rock.  And every one that heareth these sayings of mine, and doeth them not, shall be likened unto a foolish man, which built his house upon the sand: And the rain descended, and the floods came, and the winds blew, and beat upon that house; and it fell: and great was the fall of it.”Matthew 7:24-27

Sin is usually the “tilting” force in one’s life.  There is a clear way to reconstruct a sin-troubled life.  That way can change one’s life.  It is the only way that works.  Man tries to change a life from the outside, hoping the inside will be altered.  God changes it from the inside, and then the outside will be transformed.  The amount of renovation is dependent on one’s obedience to God’s commands found in His Word.

When a man is saved, his life is changed.  The inward change is done in the heart.  That is why the Bible names a spiritually revitalized person as “born again”.  A life is started all over again.

He is a new creature.  All sins are forgiven and forgotten by God.  The new life can begin on a new foundation that will support the load of life’s troubles.  Guilt from sin will disappear.  An eternal penalty for past sins is gone!

This “second chance” can be achieved by admitting one’s sins.  The Bible reminds us that we are all sinners.  Not one of us has pleased God with our good works or kindness.
“For all have sinned, and come short of the glory of God;” Romans 3:23

God certainly knows we are sinners.  Our confession of our guilt shows God that we are humbling ourselves and admitting our failure in doing it our way rather than His.
“That if thou shalt confess with thy mouth the Lord Jesus, and shalt believe in thine heart that God hath raised him from the dead, thou shalt be saved.” Romans 10:9

Once our sinfulness is acknowledged, one must know that a price has been paid for our sins.  God’s only son, Jesus, paid that price.  The death He suffered on the cross was not for His sin, as He was sinless.  It was for our transgressions.  His payment is the only fee God will accept.  We cannot pay for our sinning against God by our good works or deeds.  Jesus has already paid the price.
“And for this cause he is the mediator of the new testament, that by means of death, for the redemption of the transgressions that were under the first testament, they which are called might receive the promise of eternal inheritance.” Hebrews 9:15

Once we are saved, we are then in the family of God.  The Father can guide if the “born again” (John 3:3) child obeys Him.  A life can be salvaged and restarted.  There can be hope.  We can compensate and recover from our self-lived lives.

The world’s solutions hardly ever work, and if they do, they often work only temporarily.  God can come into a life and straighten the crooked course, and it can stay undeviated.

Build your life around the Word of God.  It is as true today as when God inspired its writing.  Since then, God has used it to raise, support, and guide millions.  It is the firm foundation.  It will never let you tilt.

“Life is a long lesson in humility.” — Barrie



Give God the Rudder
C. H. Spurgeon

I have heard of a young man who went to college, and when he was there one year, his parents said to him, “What do you know?  Do you know more than when you went?”

“Oh!  Yes,” said he, “I do.”

Then, after he attended the second year, he was asked the same question, “Do you know more than when you went?”

“Oh!  No,” said he, “I know a great deal less than I thought.”

“Well,” said the father,” you are getting somewhere now.”

Then he went to the third year and was asked the same question.  “What do you know now?”

“Oh!” said he, “I don’t think I know half as much as I should know.”

“That is right,” said the father; “you will now profit since you say you know nothing.  He who is convinced that he knows nothing of himself as he ought to know gives up steering his ship and lets God put his hand on the rudder.”

“The truest end of life is to know the life that never ends.” — William Penn

The BIBLE VIEW #1004 — Don’t Quit

In This Issue:
They Kept On Despite Difficulties
In the Master’s Hand
Don’t Quit

Volume: 1004   May 5, 202
Theme:  Don’t Quit

The  Daily View is a free, daily devotion.  Sign up (https://lp.constantcontactpages.com/su/a26cc9M), and you will be e-mailed a link to read or HEAR a KJV chapter and a short commentary (200-700 words) of something taught in the day’s reading.  The e-mail will include a mini-sermon in pictures, a prayer list, Thought for The Day, a Bible study, and short articles reinforcing biblical principles.

They Kept On Despite Difficulties
Bill Brinkworth

Heroes of the faith have continued since biblical times.  Here are just a few of the countless faithful ones:

  • Hundreds of thousands of Christians lost their lives rather than deny that Jesus is the only way to Heaven or that the Bible is the preserved Word of God.  The unwavering faithfulness of those heroes of the faith is why the truth from the Word of God is still preached in many churches, and we still have the preserved Word of God available to us.  The testimonies of many of those heroes who died by the sword, fire, torture, and other hideous ways for their faith can be read in Foxes Book of Martyrs (1563).
  • Fanny Crosby (Frances Jane van Alstne Crosby)  March 23,1820 – Feb. 12, 1915.    Although blinded shortly after her birth, Fanny did not let her handicap hinder her from being a Christian testimony and serving the Lord.  Her over 8,000 hymns are still sung today, including: “Blessed Assurance” and “Pass Me Not, O Gentle Saviour”.  She also spent her life teaching and doing rescue mission work.
  • Horatio Spafford.  Horatio lost many of his properties to the devastation of the 1871 Great Chicago Fire and was ruined financially.  He sent his family to Europe while he stayed behind and handled some business.  On the trip over, four of his daughters died after their ship sank in the Atlantic.  Only his wife survived.  Traveling to join his wife, he penned one of the greatest hymns about having peace during a crisis.  It is entitled “It Is Well with My Soul” and has encouraged many people going through life’s difficulties.
  • John R. Rice, Billy Sunday….  These men, and many more, took a stand in the early to mid-twentieth century to stop the damage done by alcohol.  Because of their strong stand against sin, many came to church, were saved, and allowed the Lord to change their lives.  This angered many saloon owners to the point that the preachers’ lives were threatened.  Still, the faithful men and women would not deviate from telling those involved in alcohol consumption the biblical truth.  Many were saved and had their lives turned around by the strong stand of those faithful Christians.
  • A wheelchair-bound Sunday school bus worker in the Chicago area.  Many years ago, a disabled woman felt called to the ministry of busing in children so they could attend Sunday school.  Every Saturday, despite how she felt or the weather, she had someone take her to the neighborhood where she wanted to invite children.  Although it was the city, and she could not go up to most of the apartments because of the inaccessibility of her wheelchair, she either sent helpers to knock on doors or stood outside the apartment until she got someone’s attention.  As a result of her determination, many, many Chicago children got to church and were saved!

“I can do all things through Christ which strengtheneth me.”   Philippians 4:13



In the Master’s Hand
Deb McCoy

Lord, I cannot imagine my life apart from your grace;
Gratitude flows from my heart as tears begin to stream down my face.
These trials and hardships you have allowed for a specific good reason;
Though I don’t understand, help me to endure these afflictions, if but for a season.

Let the pathway of my heart never forsake what Christ endured;
May my testimony of Christ within never tragically be obscured.
Let bitterness and anger not hinder my course lest I stray;
May the Holy Spirit flow freely through my life each and every day.

My perseverance, my strength, and my courage are inspired by you Lord.
Knowing you as Father and Saviour is my greatest reward.
You are my creator, deliverer, provider, and guide;
Through the most painful chapters of my life, there is comfort with you by my side.

Ingratitude and self-pity have dissipated as hope has dawned again;
Overshadowed by unhindered expressions of your love time and again.
I struggle at times with insignificance, powerlessness, and even purposelessness.
It is during those times you never cease to amaze and inspire me with glimpses of your goodness.

Lord I know you have so graciously preserved me;
It is my desire to embrace your truth for others to see.
Thank you Lord for your mercy, understanding, and patience.
Your Word is my foundation to provide for all of my substance.

Regardless of circumstances help me to continually abide in your Word;
Continually seeking you alone, as there is never a prayer that has returned unheard.
My gratitude and praises no price can it measure.
Heavenly Father, you are the most gifted treasure!

What blesses my heart most about this poem is that it was written by a person going through great trials and tribulations, but she still has great faith, hope, and strength.  She writes: “My kidneys are back and forth between improving and failure.  The report on my injuries from recent falls and diabetic complications has come to the forefront of serious concerns.  My diabetes is brittle, and the shots caused elevated dangerous levels.  I see the orthopedic doctor again next week and believe I will be sent to a team of surgeons.  I am looking at multiple surgeries as the trauma from falls has caused considerable damage.  Once I meet with the surgeons, I will just need to continue praying for wisdom to make difficult decisions.  It will be rough as each surgery is very complicated.  I am just praying for guidance and peace to know what to do.  I am feeling so poorly and have too many diffuse pains competing with each other on top of the already existing neuropathy.  I push through, but have no energy.  The struggle, both physically and emotionally, seems overwhelming, I love the Lord so much, and He will get me through this!”

When peace like a river, attendeth my way,
When sorrows like sea billows roll
Whatever my lot, thou hast taught me to say
It is well, it is well, with my soul

Chorus:
It is well
With my soul
It is well, it is well with my soul
From the Hymn “It Is Well with My Soul” by Horatio G. Spafford

Don’t Quit
Bill Brinkworth

Too many quit or want to stop when the going gets rough.  In most cases, one never really quits the problem.  One may move away from it, but it follows a person, often much of one’s life.  The obstacle is still there.

Quitters are everywhere:

  • Husbands feel they cannot handle the burden of being a husband and father and run away.  Although he is distant from his family, he is still a father and husband.  His running away has not changed that.  The problems he ran away from usually get far bigger than they originally were.
  • Wives run off leaving families and husbands; however, each is still a wife and mother.
  • Children sometimes do not like their parent’s rules.  They run away, but they still have the same parents.  They just put space between themselves and the unsolved problem that will most likey haunt them for the rest of their lives unless they stay and work out the problem.
  • Students quit school but usually have a future without training and education.  The rest of their lives are often stalled because they never learned the necessary lessons to further their lives.
  • Friends quit long-term friendships because of arguments.
  • Employees quit when they do not like what is happening at the workplace.

It usually is easy to walk away from an uncomfortable situation.  It does not take character, intelligence, or common sense to run away when the way gets tough.  Rarely is anything solved by quitting.  There will always be problems in life.  Unsolved problems have a way of following us wherever we go.

Many take their quitting lifestyle and apply it to their spiritual lives.  Here are several reasons why one cannot quit on God:

  • You cannot quit being a Christian: Once a true Christian, always a Christian.  You did not earn it.  It was a free gift of salvation if you trusted Jesus’ finished work on the cross as payment for all your sins.  However, too many quit being Christ-like.
    “And I give unto them eternal life; and they shall never perish, neither shall any man pluck them out of my hand.  My Father, which gave them me, is greater than all; and no man is able to pluck them out of my Father’s hand.” John 10:28-29
  • You cannot quit because the enemy has nothing to offer.  There are only two sides – Satan’s and God’s.  If one is truly saved by faith, he cannot get unsaved and be on the loser’s side.
    “Wherefore take unto you the whole armour of God, that ye may be able to withstand in the evil day, and having done all, to stand.” Ephesians 6:13
  • You should not quit because victory may be just around the corner.  Troubles and tribulations are part of the school of life.  You may be very close to passing the “test” and going on to life’s next lesson.  Do not quit now.
    “And the Lord shall deliver me from every evil work, and will preserve me unto his heavenly kingdom: to whom be glory for ever and ever.  Amen.” II Timothy 4:18
  • You cannot quit when you make a mistake.  Just get back in the saddle and try again.
    “Who shall separate us from the love of Christ?  shall tribulation, or distress, or persecution, or famine, or nakedness, or peril, or sword?  As it is written, For thy sake we are killed all the day long; we are accounted as sheep for the slaughter.  Nay, in all these things we are more than conquerors through him that loved us.  For I am persuaded, that neither death, nor life, nor angels, nor principalities, nor powers, nor things present, nor things to come, Nor height, nor depth, nor any other creature, shall be able to separate us from the love of God, which is in Christ Jesus our Lord.” Romans 8:35-39
  • You cannot quit now; you will miss the harvest.  Maybe your problem will be over one day, and you will reap a blessing from the tribulation.  Perhaps it will be tomorrow or the day after.  Spiritual fruit does not always come the day it is planted.
    “Therefore, my beloved brethren, be ye stedfast, unmoveable, always abounding in the work of the Lord, forasmuch as ye know that your labour is not in vain in the Lord.” I Corinthians 15:58  Also: John 15:4.

Many times, life is very difficult.  If you are a Christian, you are on the winning side.  Do not quit now.  Victory is possible; it is a blessing when achieved and may be just around the corner!

“Nay, in all these things we are more than conquerors through him that loved us.”   Romans 8:37

The BIBLE VIEW #1003 — Temptation

In This Issue:
Drifting Away
Shame!  Shame!
Don’t Dig It Up!
Tested before Deemed Trustworthy

Volume: 1003   April 28, 2025
Theme:  Temptations

The  Daily View is a free, daily devotion.  Sign up (https://lp.constantcontactpages.com/su/a26cc9M), and you will be e-mailed a link to read or HEAR a KJV chapter and a short commentary (200-700 words) of something taught in the day’s reading.  The e-mail will include a mini-sermon in pictures, a prayer list, Thought for The Day, a Bible study, and short articles reinforcing biblical principles.

Read what readers have said about the e-mailed devotion at
https://www.devotionsfromthebible.com/what-readers-say/



Drifting Away

The battle for living a godly life does not end when one is saved. It begins when one trusts Christ as Saviour, especially if one is determined to live an obedient, Christian life.  

Some succumb to the temptations of this world and lose their love for the things of God. Demas, spoken of in II Timothy 4, was one such causality.
“For Demas hath forsaken me, having loved this present world, and is departed unto Thessalonica; Crescens to Galatia, Titus unto Dalmatia.” II Timothy 4:10

For a while, Demas was a faithful fellow laborer in Christ (Col. 4:14, Philemon 1:24) alongside Paul. Paul relied on Demas to help reach the lost.  Like countless millions, however, the allure of this world caught Demas’ eye and lured him away from his main purpose in life.

Since I have been saved, I have seen many Demases. They got saved and started sitting next to us in a pew. They never missed preaching. 

When the doors of the church were opened, they were there. As the preacher preached, they jotted down what was said as fast as possible. Their marked Bible was evidence that they read the Word of God quite often. Conversations with them indicated they had a consistent prayer life. 

Then, a downward decline started. A once faithful believer missed one church service. It was not long until another was missed. Soon, only one service a week was attended, and then their pew was permanently empty.

A visit to their home revealed that, like Demas, their priorities had changed. No longer was pleasing the Lord their number one goal. Faithfulness to Him had been replaced by a new job, girlfriend, hobby, or sport. Like a fish tempted by a shiny, fluttering lure, they had gotten hooked by something the world offered.  They were soon out of a lifestyle purposing to obey the Lord.

“Drifting away” from living a God-pleasing life can happen to any Christian.  It may begin when one reads the Bible and does not get excited about what was read or by sitting through church and not getting anything out of it.  It can be a spiritually downhill slide when one has too many spiritual “used-to-does”.

When those temptations come, do as Paul did; fight the “good fight” (II Tim. 4:7). Fight any change from doing right.  It may be a lifelong struggle.  If you fail, get back up and do what you used to do.  Finish the course (II Tim. 4:7).  Its benefits are everlasting!

“When a man who professes to be converted says that he goes into the world and sin for pleasure, it is as if an angel went to Hell for enjoyment.”
 — C. H. Spurgeon

Shame!  Shame!
Bill Brinkworth

“And have no fellowship with the unfruitful works of darkness, but rather reprove them.  For it is a shame even to speak of those things which are done of them in secret.” Ephesians 5:11-12

The Bible commands Christians to keep far away from the luring grasp of sin.  We are not only to do our best not to commit sin and avoid those involved in it, but we are not even to talk about the iniquities in which others are involved.

This last principle has been ignored by most, and the opposite is practiced.  Many, instead of obeying God’s command, “educate” the masses about certain behavior.  Their hopes are often that knowledge of the side effects of certain socially unacceptable practices, often what the Bible identifies as sin, will help people stay away from them.  Unfortunately, education about something one should not do frequently stimulates an interest in trying to do that very thing.

Programs to educate youth about not doing drugs quite often put the ideas in their minds about doing them and show them how to do something they would never have known about if they had not been shown how or introduced to it by “education”.  The Drug Abuse Resistance Education (D. A. R. E.), a publicly-funded program that uses law enforcement resources to help children resist drugs and gangs, illustrates this fact.

Instead of reducing the number of children involved in those things, it has been found that there has been an increase in their involvement in drugs and gangs.  The Family Council of Drug Awareness reported, “Since its curriculum (D. A. R. E.’s) went national, two patterns have emerged: more students now do drugs, and they start using drugs at an earlier age.” Education about something that should not be discussed often increases the practice, not decreases it.

Billions of dollars of taxpayers’ money have been spent over the decades to give young people a sex education under the guise that knowledge will help them keep from making “mistakes.”  Instead, education about sex has increased and encouraged its practice at an early age before marriage.  

Birth rates quickly prove this fact.  In 1950, when sex outside marriage was not openly talked about, especially in the school curriculum, birth rates for unmarried women were about 30 per 1,000.  The Center for Disease Control (CDC) reported that the birth rate has decreased from previous years.  However, it is now over 450 per 1,000 unmarried women.  The CDC also noted that abortions in 1970 were 10 per 1,000 and increased to over 70 per 1,000, not including the effects of growing usage of birth control, including the day-after “emergency” birth control drugs.  Again, education about not doing something has become a “how-to” and an invitation to “do.”

Other once unwelcomed behaviors are also on the increase.  There was a time when few even knew a divorced couple; now, it is difficult to find couples that have not been divorced.  Perhaps the exposure in movies and television about divorce and adultery has made a once feared occurrence a ho-hum common one. 

Homosexuality, imprisonment, poor parenting, lack of respect for Christianity, crime, and hosts of other once frowned-upon activities are common in public-school lesson plans and media “entertainment,” that they have lost their social stigma and are now acceptable and even encouraged in some areas.  Knowledge of what was once taboos again has contaminated society by going against God’s commandment to discuss something that should not even be whispered about.

The world often defends its efforts in “educating” by belittling God’s commandments and labeling it as making the masses willfully ignorant or “censoring the truth.” The truth, however, is that in most situations, speaking of practices that should not be committed only puts the idea in one’s head.  It does not take much thought to develop the idea to, “I’ll just try it this once”.  Once it is experienced, inhibitions are worn away, and a more frequent practice is easily accomplished.

The human brain is an amazing organ.   It seldom completely forgets something to which it has been exposed.  Conversation about doing improper things often is where the idea to commit them originates.  

God’s wisdom warns us not even to talk about sin because it will not be long until you are neck-deep in it — paraphrased, of course.  God’s commandments are always the best.  If heeded, they will keep you from the hurtful consequences of sin.

“You are free to choose, but you are not free from the consequences of your choice.” Barbara Brinkworth

Don’t Dig It Up!
Salters, 1871

Worms and other insects take up their habitation under the surface of the Earth.  A plot of ground may be outwardly covered with grass and decorated with flowers.  Take a spade in your hand and turn up the solid ground, and you soon have a sample of the creatures and filth that lurk beneath.  Temptation is the spade that breaks up the ground of a believer’s heart and helps him discover the corruptions of his fallen nature.

“In diving to the bottom for pleasures, we bring up more gravel than pearls.”
—Spurgeon

Tested before Deemed Trustworthy
C. H. Spurgeon

A further reason why you are tempted and tried is that God, in His wise providence, is testing you to see whether you are fit for His work.  Before a firearm is sold, it is taken to the proof shop.  

It is loaded with a charge, perhaps four or five times heavier than it will ever have to carry at the ordinary sportsman’s hand.  The barrels are filled, and no great hurt is done if they burst in the proof house.  However, it would be exceedingly dangerous if they should burst in the hands of some unskilled man in the field.

God often tests His servants.  Some that He will make special use of are put to the “proof house.”  Perhaps they are loaded with five times more temptations than any person should ordinarily endure so that God may see and prove to onlookers that they are fit for His Divine service.

We have heard that the old warriors before they would use their swords, would bend them across their knees.  They had to see whether the weapons had the right stuff before they would venture into battle with them.  God does this with His servants.

If it had not been for the devil, Martin Luther had never been the Martin Luther he was.  The devil was, as it were, the proof house for Martin Luther.  One must be tried and tempted before he becomes fit for the Master’s use.

“God doesn’t give us what we can handle; God helps us handle what we are given.”