A Revolutionary Book

 A revolutionary book is a book which promotes change and goes against ideas and practices that are generally accepted in a society or group of people within a society.  This can be good or back.  Ideas have consequences.  When people are convinced that the ideas are correct, they will attempt to put them into practice.  If the ideas are bad, the results are disastrous [i.e. socialism].  If the ideas are good, then they can bring about positive change.  As the Bible says, "a good tree brings forth good fruit, and a bad tree brings forth bad fruit."  Both are revolutionary, and both start with ideas.

One of the most positive revolutionary books I know is Institutes Of Biblical Law by R.J. Rushdoony.  This book takes the Bible seriously and seeks to understand the laws given by God in the Pentateuch and how they apply in modern society.  Reading this book opens a person's eyes to how far off-track our societies really are.  We begin to understand why we face the social problems and crimes that we do and what God's personal and national standards are.  Both non-Christians and many Christians hate or, at least, misunderstand God's Law and naturally dislike a book that honours and seeks to understand God's law.  

If understood and applied, this book would revolutionize our lives and our nations to the benefit of all.  I have developed a course based on the Institutes Of Biblical Law.  Part One is available now, and Part Two is currently being developed.  Don't miss this opportunity.  Check out Biblical Law I on www.joshua-institute.com today.

Friends And Enemies

 Books can be your best friends or your worst enemies.  As best friends, they entertain us with thrilling stories that can vicariously excite us or help us see the world through the eyes of a different person.  They can also inform or educate us on a variety of topics so that we can make informed decisions and understand the world around us a little bit better.

But they can also be vile enemies full of deceit and misinformation, which, if believed and acted on, will bring pain and destruction into our lives and the lives of others.  In my opinion, the writings of Charles Darwin fall into this category as they have laid the foundation for the promotion of evil, which has shipwrecked millions of lives to date and threatens to destroy Western Civilization.  Also, there are fiction books which play to our sinful nature and inspire both evil thoughts and actions.

So, choose your books wisely.  They can either build and enrich your life or destroy it.  The ultimate standard of Truth by which all things should be and will be judged is the Word of God, the Bible.

Book Reviews

 I have decided to go away from Colossians commentary and use this blog for things related to books in general or news about our website and upcoming projects.

As I finish reading books, I will be adding my reviews of them to the website.  I hope you will add reviews of books you are reading as well.  It adds variety, gives people ideas of what they may want to read next and helps promote the books of your favourite authors.  We all need all the encouragement we can get.  I just added two reviews, one for Protective Custody and one for Finding God In Unexpected Places.  I wish I had more time for reading....

The Spirit Gives - Colossians 1:9

  ...We continually ask God to fill you with the knowledge of His will through all the wisdom and understanding that the Spirit gives...

It is impossible to do the will of God until we have responded to the first 'will of God,' which is believing in Jesus Christ as Lord and Saviour.  That is the first step.  After we have responded in obedience, we can then proceed to implement the rest of God's will as it is revealed to us by the Holy Spirit.  We need His wisdom and understanding to correctly apply God's Word [His will] in our daily lives.  This is not something that is naturally comprehended.  It is spiritually discerned.  After all, if you are struggling financially, what natural sense does it make to give away 10% of your income?  God's ways are not ours; we need to lean on and trust the wisdom and understanding we receive from the Holy Spirit.

Knowledge Of God's Will - Col. 1:9

 ...We continually ask God to fill you with the knowledge of His will through all the wisdom and understanding that the Spirit gives...

What is the knowledge of God's will?  We sometimes have strange views about the will of God.  We think it is hard to find.  We ask God to lead and guide us in big and small decisions:  should I marry person A?  Have a career in B job?  Live in X city?  Witness to my neighbour?  Have cereal for breakfast or eggs?  Etc.

God has revealed His will in His Word.  If we are not living in the light we have, we do not have the right to expect God to give us further guidance.  For example, a person who prays about whether it is God's to marry a specific person while not maintaining God's sexual standards or knowing that the intended is not a Christian has no right to expect God to answer.  They are not living according to God's revealed will; why should He tell them anything else?

The knowledge of the Will of God comes first and primarily from the Scripture.  God expects us to live according to the standards and rules He has clearly laid out.  If we are going to be filled with the knowledge of God's will, we need to be filled with the Scripture...and order our lives according to it.  

Until that happens, any other seeking after the will of God is simply self-deception.  We don't really want to know the will of God; we want God to approve our will.  We become like the army officers in Jeremiah 42 and 43.

"Then all the army officers...they said to Jeremiah, 'May the Lord be a true and faithful witness against us if we do not act in accordance with everything the Lord your God sends you to tell us.  Whether it is favourable or unfavourable, we will obey the Lord our God...Ten days later the word of the Lord came to Jeremiah...When Jeremiah had finished telling the people all the words of the Lord their God...all the arrogant men said to Jeremiah, 'You are lying!  The Lord our God has not sent you...'...the army officers and all the people disobeyed the Lord's command to stand in the land of Judah."

We say we want God's will, but when it turns out to be something we don't like, we disobey it showing that all we really wanted was for God to approve our will.

Praying For People You Don't Know - Col. 1:9

 For this reason, since the day we heard about you, we have not stopped praying for you...

Paul apparently had not met the Colossians.  He had only heard about them through Epaphras, yet his pastor's heart went out to them.  He wanted God's best for them.  He wanted them to grow and mature as Christians.  He cared for them.  He prayed for them.

We can easily focus on our families or people we know.  It is easy to have our little circle and not peer too far beyond it...perhaps to a missionary sponsored by our church but not too far.  Sometimes this can be seen in church gatherings.  Friends clump together, talking and enjoying each other's company, while visitors or strangers are not acknowledged or only given a passing 'hello.'  [Unless, of course, it is our 'job' to be a greeter.]. I admit this is one of my weaknesses that I have to work on.  I tend not to be outgoing unless it is part of my professional persona [I work in retail].  I [and we] need to be more like Paul, concerned and involved in the success of others, especially in the Christian faith, whether we have a personal connection with them or not.

Book Updates

 The Gallant Mystery has been submitted to a professional editor to review.  I will probably receive the corrective ideas in late January.  In the meantime, I am working on a revision of The Disappearance Of Captain Danson.