Hello!

I pray you had a great weekend.

The New Testament portion of The Skeptic's Annotated Bible: Corrected and Explained has been completed!  This has become my Masters thesis and this week I'm sending it to my seminary.  Please pray I get a good grade!

A special thanks goes to everyone who helped us purchase the cases for the SAB:C/E cds!  You are a great blessing and we appreciate you.  We are still accepting support for the duplication fees, the paper and the cds.   If you want a discounted copy of this cd, please visit the pre-order site!  You can even see some examples of it.  Until March 10, the cd is only $12 (with free shipping for U.S. customers)!

I'm considering publishing The SAB: Corrected and Explained into a book.  If you have any ideas regarding publishing or wish to support this project, please let me know.  Even though it's easier to make the cds and reach people via the web and their home computer, some people prefer reading a book, so I need to consider publishing it.

On Saturday, I attended the Steeling the Mind Conference in Southern California!  It was encouraging and dynamic as usual.  If you'd like to read my notes and see some book recommendations from my experience at the conference, please go here:  http://www.jcsm.org/biblelessons/Steeling2003.htm.

Do you need a female, Christian mentor?  If you have questions that you'd like to ask a Christian woman, please let me know.  JCSM has a discipleship program and I just received an application from a woman that would make a great mentor.

The online discipleship consists of having a mentor/disciple relationship that is open to your needs.  You will be supplied with each other's email addresses and have the opportunity to develop any kind of relationship you wish.  I simply screen the applicants to make sure we don't have any heretics mentoring.

Are you ready for a possible terror attack?  The U.S. government has given us a new web site that will help prepare us for all kinds of attacks.  When you have a minute, please visit http://www.ready.gov.

Many months ago, I met a girl online who was involved in witchcraft.  I told her the good news, but she rejected it.  A couple of days ago, she emailed me and told me that she repented and began trusting Christ for her salvation!  This was great and encouraging news.  Please pray that she continues to grow in faith and love.

God bless you as you read this message and do your daily tasks!  We hope that you are blessed richly.

This is your ministry, so please feel free to link to JCSM and forward these devotions to your friends and family. On the JCSM website, there are over 5000 links (pictures, forums, midis, Bible lessons, humor, proverbial stories, links, devotions, poetry, prayer journals and much more!) and it has registered over 106,000 visits!

JCSM has encouraging sermons and debates online that you can freely stream and download!  Come and hear them on SermonAudio.com!  Here is our site: http://sa.jcsm.org.

Welcome to the new readers of this message! Here are the Devotions, A Moment of Introspection, JCSM's Challenge, the Bible Word of the Week, a faith-builder from "The Skeptic's Annotated Bible: Corrected and Explained" and the Quotes of the Week. Have a fantastic week and God bless you!

Love in Christ,

Jason J. Gastrich

The Weekly Devotional Message

Day 1: "Avoid Ignorance"

Psalm 73:22  "I was so foolish and ignorant; I was like a beast before You."

Acts 17:30, 31  "Truly, these times of ignorance God overlooked, but now commands all men everywhere to repent, because He has appointed a day on which He will judge the world in righteousness by the Man whom He has ordained.  He has given assurance of this to all by raising Him from the dead."

1 Corinthians 12:1-3  "Now concerning spiritual gifts, brethren, I do not want you to be ignorant: You know that you were Gentiles, carried away to these dumb idols, however you were led.  Therefore I make known to you that no one speaking by the Spirit of God calls Jesus accursed, and no one can say that Jesus is Lord except by the Holy Spirit."

Ephesians 4:17-19  "This I say, therefore, and testify in the Lord, that you should no longer walk as the rest of the Gentiles walk, in the futility of their mind, having their understanding darkened, being alienated from the life of God, because of the ignorance that is in them, because of the blindness of their heart; who, being past feeling, have given themselves over to lewdness, to work all uncleanness with greediness."

1 Timothy 2:23  "But avoid foolish and ignorant disputes, knowing that they generate strife."

2 Timothy 2:15  "Study to show yourself approved to God, a worker who does not need to be ashamed, rightly dividing the word of truth.

1 Peter 1:13-15  "Therefore gird up the loins of your mind, be sober, and rest your hope fully upon the grace that is to be brought to you at the revelation of Jesus Christ; as obedient children, not conforming yourselves to the former lusts, as in your ignorance; but as He who called you is holy, you also be holy in all your conduct, because it is written, 'Be holy, for I am holy.'"

Insight: Knowledge is the opposite of ignorance.  Educate yourself on the things of God.  His Word will teach you awesome truths.  Older and more mature Christians can also teach you great things.  Don't remain ignorant.

Prayer: "Thank you for meeting us where we are and taking us where You want us to be, Lord.  Thank you for removing our ignorance and replacing it with your righteousness.  Forgive us for being foolish.  Thank you for forgiving us and loving us.  Let us have wise mentors and leaders, so we can learn great things.  Praise You and your holiness.  There is no other God like You.  Remind us how we can become wise by listening to You and obeying You.  In Jesus' name, Amen."

Day 2: "Understand God's Laws and Understand His Grace"

Romans 7:7-12  "What shall we say then?  Is the law sin?  Certainly not!  On the contrary, I would not have known sin except through the law.  For I would not have known covetousness unless the law had said, 'You shall not covet.'  But sin, taking opportunity by the commandment, produced in me all manner of evil desire.  For apart from the law sin was dead.  I was alive once without the law, but when the commandment came, sin revived and I died.  And the commandment, which was to bring life, I found to bring death.  For sin, taking occasion by the commandment, deceived me, and by it killed me.  Therefore the law is holy, and the commandment holy and just and good."

Romans 5:20, 21  "Moreover the law entered that the offense might abound. But where sin abounded, grace abounded much more, so that as sin reigned in death, even so grace might reign through righteousness to eternal life through Jesus Christ our Lord."

Insight: Since we know God's laws, we know we fall short of His requirements.  However, we also know that God's grace abounds!  As you stumble and fail, thank God for His grace.  It picks you up and gives you second, third, fourth, fifth, sixth (etc.) chances!

Prayer: "Thank you for loving us so much, Lord.  Help us to love others like You do.  Help people to really experience your love and understand how good You are.  Thank you for having grace on wicked people.  You have given us the law.  The law makes sense.  You are a good judge.  We believe You reward the righteous and punish the unrighteous.  Help us to obey You.  Thank you for giving us your grace!  Help us to avoid tempting You to judge us for trampling on your grace.  Let us judge ourselves!  Let us repair our relationship with You and do what we ought - repent and turn to You, again.  In Jesus' name, Amen."

Day 3: "Watch Your Words"

Proverbs 14:23  "In all labor there is profit, but idle chatter leads only to poverty."

Proverbs 15:26  "The thoughts of the wicked are an abomination to the LORD, but the words of the pure are pleasant."

Matthew 12:35, 36  "But I say to you that for every idle word men may speak, they will give account of it in the day of judgment.  For by your words you will be justified, and by your words you will be condemned."

1 Timothy 6:20-21a  "O Timothy!  Guard what was committed to your trust, avoiding the profane and idle babblings and contradictions of what is falsely called knowledge - by professing it some have strayed concerning the faith."

2 Timothy 2:16-17a  "But shun profane and idle babblings, for they will increase to more ungodliness. And their message will spread like cancer."

Titus 1:10, 11  "For there are many insubordinate, both idle talkers and deceivers, especially those of the circumcision, whose mouths must be stopped, who subvert whole households, teaching things which they ought not, for the sake of dishonest gain."

Titus 2:6-8  "Likewise, exhort the young men to be sober-minded, in all things showing yourself to be a pattern of good works; in doctrine showing integrity, reverence, incorruptibility, sound speech that cannot be condemned, that one who is an opponent may be ashamed, having nothing evil to say of you."

Insight: God cares about every word that comes from our mouths.  Be careful and make sure you speak the truth in love.  God will judge us for the things we decide to say.  Build others with your speech.  Help others by encouraging them to be righteous.

Prayer: "Thank you for giving us freedom to say what we wish.  Help us to use our freedom wisely.  Thank you for giving us details about what we should say and shouldn't say.  Thank you for helping us with your Holy Spirit.  Reveal your will for us.  Give us boldness and courage and give us confidence, so we may encourage others, even if we don't feel that we are worthy.  Thank you for those that speak loving words to us.  Help us to cherish them and love them, too.  In Jesus' name, Amen."

Day 4: "Fruits of a True Convert"

Matthew 3:8  "Bear fruits worthy of repentance."

Luke 8:15  "But the ones that fell on the good ground are those who, having heard the word with a noble and good heart, keep it and bear fruit with patience."

Colossians 1:10  "Walk worthy of the Lord, fully pleasing Him, being fruitful in every good work and increasing in the knowledge of God."

Hebrews 13:15  "Therefore by Him let us continually offer the sacrifice of praise to God, that is, the fruit of our lips, giving thanks to His name."

Galatians 5:22, 23  "But the fruit of the Spirit is love, joy, peace, longsuffering, kindness, goodness, faithfulness, gentleness, self-control. Against such there is no law."

Philippians 1:11  "Be filled with the fruits of righteousness which are by Jesus Christ, to the glory and praise of God.

Insight: True believers will have evidence of their faith.  This evidence manifests itself in good deeds and fruit.  Have you seen the fruit of your faith?  If you haven't, then others probably haven't, too.  Make sure you have repented and trusted Christ, then make an effort to live for Him; doing things in His name, loving others, working to change yourself into a Christ-like image, etc.

Prayer: "Thank you for changing lives!  Thank you for changing my life so much.  Help us to remember that You do not change and we should always be changing.  Forgive us for our apathy.  Forgive us for our complacency.  Lift us up and let us see You!  Remind us to be occupied with your presence and not simply the things You have for us to do.  Let us emulate You!  Forgive us for emulating the world.  You are our desire and we love You more than anything.  Thank you for keeping harmful things from us.  Remind us that we like to separate ourselves from You, so You must keep things from us.  In Jesus' name, Amen."

Day 5: "Have You Marveled, Lately?"

Psalm 33:8, 9  "Let all the earth fear the LORD; let all the inhabitants of the world stand in awe of Him.  For He spoke, and it was done; He commanded, and it stood fast."

Matthew 8:26, 27  "But He said to them, 'Why are you fearful, O you of little faith?'  Then He arose and rebuked the winds and the sea, and there was a great calm.  So the men marveled, saying, 'Who can this be, that even the winds and the sea obey Him?'"

Matthew 9:32, 33  "As they went out, behold, they brought to Him a man, mute and demon-possessed.  And when the demon was cast out, the mute spoke.  And the multitudes marveled, saying, 'It was never seen like this in Israel!'"

Matthew 15:30, 31  "Then great multitudes came to Him, having with them the lame, blind, mute, maimed, and many others; and they laid them down at Jesus’ feet, and He healed them.  So the multitude marveled when they saw the mute speaking, the maimed made whole, the lame walking, and the blind seeing; and they glorified the God of Israel."

Matthew 27:54  "So when the centurion and those with him, who were guarding Jesus, saw the earthquake and the things that had happened, they feared greatly, saying, 'Truly this was the Son of God!'"

Acts 4:13  "Now when they saw the boldness of Peter and John, and perceived that they were uneducated and untrained men, they marveled. And they realized that they had been with Jesus."

Insight: There is no other god like our God!  The uncreated, Creator God has made all things for His glory.  Have you marveled at Him, lately?  Will you?

Prayer: "Praise You for being so huge!  You are greater than we can imagine.  You are beyond our thoughts and ways.  Remind us that You can fill us and help us.  Forgive us for wanting to do things our way and forgetting about You.  Help us to have discipline and self-control.  Praise You for making the things that we see around us.  Help us to understand You and your ways.  You surely know more than we do.  Forgive us for putting foolish idols in your place.  Let us tear them down and put You where You belong, again.  To You be all the glory.  We will marvel at You and your greatness!  In Jesus' name, Amen."

Day 6: "Is the Truth Tolerant and Accepting?"

Psalm 5:4  "I know you get no pleasure from wickedness and cannot tolerate the slightest sin."

Proverb 8:13  "The fear of the LORD is to hate evil; pride and arrogance and the evil way and the perverse mouth I hate."

Matthew 5:48  "Therefore you shall be perfect, just as your Father in heaven is perfect."

1 Corinthians 15:34  "Awaken to righteousness and do not sin . . ."

1 John 1:5  ". . . God is light and in Him is no darkness at all."

Insight: God doesn't tolerate sin.  He hates it.  Do you see sin like God does?  Don't entertain sin.  Don't consider it.  Remove and avoid it.  Seek God for help and repent as quickly and as often as possible.

Prayer: "Thank you for warning us about sin, Lord.  Thank you for wanting us to be pure and holy.  Remove our sins from us.  Give us your awesome righteousness!  Let us see You.  Thank you for having patience with us, even though we are flawed people who often embrace foolishness.  Let us become wise and embrace You and your ways.  Convict us as we sin and help us to repent.  Thank you for giving people time to repent and not condemning them!  Let us understand how You are full of mercy and grace, but will eventually judge all people.  We love You and thank You, Lord.  You are the great and perfect judge and Lord of all.  In Jesus' name, Amen."

Day 7: "Instruments of Righteousness"

Romans 6:13  "And do not present your members as instruments of unrighteousness to sin, but present yourselves to God as being alive from the dead, and your members as instruments of righteousness to God."

Job 31:1  "I have made a covenant with my eyes; why then should I look upon a young woman?"

1 Timothy 2:8  "I desire therefore that the men pray everywhere, lifting up holy hands, without wrath and doubting;"

Hebrews 12:1  "Therefore we also, since we are surrounded by so great a cloud of witnesses, let us lay aside every weight, and the sin which so easily ensnares us, and let us run with endurance the race that is set before us."

Philippians 4:6-8  "Be anxious for nothing, but in everything by prayer and supplication, with thanksgiving, let your requests be made known to God; and the peace of God, which surpasses all understanding, will guard your hearts and minds through Christ Jesus.  Finally, brethren, whatever things are true, whatever things are noble, whatever things are just, whatever things are pure, whatever things are lovely, whatever things are of good report, if there is any virtue and if there is anything praiseworthy—meditate on these things."

Ephesians 4:29  "Let no corrupt word proceed out of your mouth, but what is good for necessary edification, that it may impart grace to the hearers."

Ezekiel 11:19, 20  "Then I will give them one heart, and I will put a new spirit within them, and take the stony heart out of their flesh, and give them a heart of flesh, that they may walk in My statutes and keep My judgments and do them; and they shall be My people, and I will be their God.

Insight: Devote your entire body to God.  Each of your members should be used for His glory.  This means your eyes, ears, hands, mind, heart, legs and everything else should be used to glorify God!

Prayer: "Thank you for giving us our bodies, Lord.  Remind us that we are instruments of your righteousness!  Forgive us for diluting our purpose and wallowing in the mire.  Praise You for lifting us up and giving us a better and more awesome calling.  Remind us of your purpose for us.  Thank you for letting us serve You.  Purify us and increase our love for You, Lord.  You are our God.  Help us to sanctify every part of ourselves and set them aside for You.  You alone are what we need.  Thank you for having patience with us as we work out our issues.  Let our love for You remain constant, though.  In Jesus' name, Amen."

Kirk Cameron gave a great lecture at the Steeling the Mind Conference.  He brought up a great point, too.  In modern evangelism, Christians often entice new converts by telling them how great Jesus will improve their life.  Is this how Jesus evangelized?

Unfortunately, if we don't tell people that they are sinners and need a Savior because of their sin, they may leave the Savior at the first signs of persecutions or trials.  They will be expecting a wonderful, happy life and if they don't get it and they were promised it, then what?

Let's hope and pray that we are all spreading the gospel like Jesus did.  Explain to people how they have transgressed against God's laws.  You can take them through the 10 Commandments.  Before getting to the end of them, you will surely hear them admit they have lied and stolen.  Use this to indicate to them that they need Jesus Christ to forgive them and give them redemption and eternal life.  Be careful not to simply make promises about a happy and wonderful life.

Witness to someone by using the 10 Commandments!  After they have admitted that they've transgressed against God, then use some New Testament passages and words of Jesus Christ.

God bless you as you meet this week's challenge!

metamorphoo: transformed - literally or figuratively, change, transfigure, transform

The Skeptic's Annotated Bible: Corrected and Explained

"The Skeptic's Annotated Bible" claims:

Genesis 1:11 - In chapter 1 plants are created on the third day before humans are created on the sixth day. But in chapter 2 the order is reversed. (2:4-7)

Plants are made on the third day before there was a sun to drive their photosynthetic processes (1:14-19).

"The Skeptic's Annotated Bible: Corrected and Explained" responds:

* The plants in 1:11 were plants in the Garden of Eden.  The plants in 2:5 and 6 are "of the field".  These plants were clearly different and even required a human to tend to them.

* This second part is correct, but poses no problem.  The God who created all things was the light.  This is further evidenced in Revelation, where God will be the light (Revelation 21:23 and 22:5).

(This explanation came from "The Skeptic's Annotated Bible: Corrected and Explained", by Jason Gastrich.  This book is on cd and explains over 1,000 difficulties regarding the entire Bible at http://www.skepticsannotatedbible.org.)  Pre-order your copy, today, for only $12!

Satan can only go so far.

God sets limits and boundaries on Satan's powers.

Since Babel, humans have wanted to become as one and reject God.

God's will isn't to make us happy all the time.

You cannot sin and say it was from God.

If you have all of the answers, then you aren't walking by faith.

Are you soft clay or hard clay?

If God has transformed you, then you'll know it.

Can you recognize the conditions the world has put on your life?

Some of God's requests will seem disastrous by worldly standards.

Your negative thoughts and attitudes can ruin your life.

God has an entirely different definition of blessed than the world does.

When God renews your mind, His will comes into view.

In part, God puts people in front of you so you can pray for them.

When you pray, be awake and alert.

God wants your best.

God is the surgeon and you are the scalpel.

If you don't hear God's voice, confess your sins and listen closer.

God's plans are worth discovering.

Discovering His will is not an exact science, it requires practice.

God has more time, resources and ideas than we can imagine.

Discovering God's will is a process.

God's plans for your life cannot contradict His Word or require you to sin.

God's plans for your life will require obedience to God through faith.

God's plans are always part of His molding and shaping of your life.

God's plans always promote His righteousness.

God's will is good, acceptable and perfect.

You will be able to verify, acknowledge and confirm God's will.

Stop trying to look like the world, be accepted by the world and act like the world.

These quotes came from God, me, Ray Bentley and Miles McPhearson.

These quotes can be used for sanctification and fun. Most of them are directly based on scripture and scriptural principles. Some of my quotes are humorous or rhetorical. Some are written from sermons and Bible studies. Others are lyrics from songs. If you’d like me to go into more detail on any of them, please email me.

Like most verses in the Bible, they can be debated. To use what I’ve written in the most beneficial way, try and trace them back to the scriptures and apply the true principles to your life in a meaningful way! Please don’t sell my quotes or publish them for profit. If English is not your first language, you may not understand some of the quotes. I'm sorry, but some of them are English metaphors and deal with multiple word meanings. God bless you all!

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Jesus loves you!

John 3:16 "For God so loved the world that He gave His only begotten Son, that whosoever should believe in Him should have everlasting life."