Bible Study

[PainPositive]

Use this thread to study the Bible. Post texts, videos, sermons on books of the Bible, and whatever resources you use to learn God's Word.

I use these videos to get an overview of a book I'm about to study. I find it very useful in keeping me engaged and helping me understand the context and message.

This one is on the book of Romans.

 

[Rum]

I have found Ken Johnson's books & videos to be very helpful.

I prefer non-"polished" preachers and teachers. I can't stand any fakeness.

Maybe that's why I'm a fan of Dr. Peter S. Ruckman as well.

I can tolerate non-conventional as long as it's Biblical

Dr. Michael Heiser is good as well.

 

[Meliorare93]

Which part of the epistles would you advise to read that has the most "life practical knowledge"? I just saw Proverb 31-3 in someone's signature and it made me laugh so it made me wondering which parts also have some golden nuggets of wisdom.

thx in advance

 

[CynicalContrarian]

One of the more fascinating passages in the Bible.
After-all, for such a one-off passage, where did the knowledge come from exactly, for a bunch of dessert nomads ~4000 years ago? :

Job 38:31-32

Canst thou bind the sweet influences of Pleiades, or loose the bands of Orion? Canst thou bring forth Mazzaroth in his season? Or canst thou guide Arcturus with his sons?

Is the Astronomy in the Book of Job Scientifically Consistent?

...the Pleiades (also known as the Seven Sisters) is an open star cluster in the constellation of Taurus. It is classified as an open cluster because it is a group of hundreds of stars formed from the same cosmic cloud. They are approximately the same age and have roughly the same chemical composition. Most importantly, they are bound to one another by mutual gravitational attraction. Isabel Lewis of the United States Naval Observatory (quoted by Phillip L. Knox in Wonder Worlds) said, “Astronomers have identified 250 stars as actual members of this group, all sharing in a common motion and drifting through space in the same direction.”
...
Orion’s belt is formed by two stars (Alnilam, and Mintaka) and one star cluster (Alnitak). Alnitak is actually a triple star system at the eastern edge of Orion’s belt. These stars (along with all the other stars forming Orion) are not gravitationally bound like those in Pleiades. Instead, the stars of Orion’s belt are heading in different directions. Garrett P. Serviss, a noted astronomer, wrote about the bands of Orion in his book, Curiosities of the Sky: “The great figure of Orion appears to be more lasting, not because its stars are physically connected, but because of their great distance, which renders their movements too deliberate to be exactly ascertained.
...
While Arcturus certainly appeared in antiquity to be a single star, in 1971 astronomers discovered there were 52 additional stars connected directionally with Arcturus (known now as the Arcturus stream). Interestingly, God described Arcturus as having “sons” and Charles Burckhalter, of the Chabot Observatory, (again quoted in Wonder Worlds) said “these stars are a law unto themselves.” Serviss added, “Arcturus is one of the greatest suns in the universe, is a runaway whose speed of flight is 257 miles per second. Arcturus, we have every reason to believe, possesses thousands of times the mass of our sun… Our sun is traveling only 12 ½ miles a second, but Arcturus is traveling 257 miles a second…” Burckhalter affirmed this description of Arcturus, saying, “This high velocity places Arcturus in that very small class of stars that apparently are a law unto themselves. He is an outsider, a visitor, a stranger within the gates; to speak plainly, Arcturus is a runaway. Newton gives the velocity of a star under control as not more than 25 miles a second, and Arcturus is going 257 miles a second. Therefore, combined attraction of all the stars we know cannot stop him or even turn him in his path.” Arcturus and “his sons” are on a course all their own. Only God has the power to guide them, just as described in the ancient book of Job.

https://coldcasechristianity.com/wr...in-the-book-of-job-scientifically-consistent/

 

[barrythecyborg]

A few years ago I listened to the Jordan Peterson interview with Joe Rogan.

JP essentially said "if you keep on doing what you're doing, in 3 - 5 years you'll be in your own personal hell"...

At the time I thought what that might look like, and really, this corona bullshit is pretty much on the money.

I wonder if there's anything in the bible to support that.

Not the idea of Hell (obviously) but the 3 - 5 years/keep doing what you're doing piece.

This whole reality is so nightmarish, it's actually convinced me that one way or another, none of this is real (only half joking).

 

[kel]

Word on Fire, the ministry(?) of Bishop Robert Barron who runs a youtube channel I've enjoyed has published the first volume of a bible featuring the gospels (with the rest of the New Testament coming as volume II in 2021). I lost my Orthodox study bible shortly after concocting a readthrough a year ago, I think I might get this and start anew (though non-linearly).

 

[Cervantes]

A few years ago I listened to the Jordan Peterson interview with Joe Rogan.

JP essentially said "if you keep on doing what you're doing, in 3 - 5 years you'll be in your own personal hell"...

At the time I thought what that might look like, and really, this corona bullshit is pretty much on the money.

I wonder if there's anything in the bible to support that.

Not the idea of Hell (obviously) but the 3 - 5 years/keep doing what you're doing piece.

This whole reality is so nightmarish, it's actually convinced me that one way or another, none of this is real (only half joking).

I've been feeling the same way. Like we're living in a nightmare. But this is real.

I've also been reading the psalms, and read the Psalm 37 two days ago which reminded me that God anticipates times like ours. The whole thing is relevant to today, but particularly 1:2, 7:8

Do not fret because of evildoers,
nor be envious of the workers of iniquity
For they shall soon be cut down like the grass,
and wither as the green herb.

Rest in the Lord, and wait patiently for Him;
Do not fret because of him who prospers in his way,
Because of the man who brings wicked schemes to pass.
Cease from anger, and forsake wrath;
Do not fret - it only causes harm.

Just because most people are falling away from faith and the world is overcome with evil doesn't mean we're at the end times. This is common stage in history. People turn away from God, and a remnant stays faithful. The Bible describes it many times as a process of refining. as in Zecharia 13:9:

And I will bring the third part through the fire,
refine them as silver is refined, and test them as gold is tested,
they will call on My name, and I will answer them;
I will say, ‘They are My people,’ and they will say, ‘The Lord is My God.’

 

[GodfatherPartTwo]

We have Bible study almost every Thursday at my local cigar lounge, the man who heads it is very wise and learned. Presbyterian. He comes at it from a different angle than I do but we agree on all the fundamentals. I find DTBM and Pastor John Barnett to be an invaluable source for studying the Bible.

 

[chronologicaldot]

I've been going through Experiencing God by Henry Blackaby. Highly recommend it. Sometimes we think we've already learned the simple lessons but we fail to implement them. This book really drills those simple lessons into you in a nice way. It's Protestant, so there's a slant I don't totally agree with being Catholic, but I think most of what the author has to say is universal for Christians.