9 Marks

While on my afternoon Internet break today at work I came across an interesting website called 9marks.org. According to the website, their mission is as follows:

We believe the local church is the focal point of God's plan for displaying his glory to the nations. Our vision is simple: Churches that reflect the character of God. Our mission is to cultivate and encourage churches characterized by these nine marks: Expositional Preaching, Biblical Theology, Biblical Understanding of the Good News, Biblical Understanding of Conversion, Biblical Understanding of Evangelism, Biblical Understanding of Membership, Biblical Church Discipline, Promotion of Christian Discipleship and Growth, Biblical Understanding of Leadership.

I took a couple minutes to look over the first Mark, Expositional Preaching, and found it very interesting. I have added this site to the links area over on the right sidebar. I look forward to looking over each of the lessons contained under each of the 9 Marks.

Do any of the 9 Marks stand out as particularly interesting to you?

JEHOVAH SHALOM II

As I was reading the lesson for this week, I came across the following statement by Mr. Fortner:

This quarrel between God and man is a mutual quarrel. God is angry with man; and man is angry with God (Zech. 11:8; Rom. 8:7). It is a universal quarrel. All the sons and daughters of Adam, without exception, are born as children of wrath by nature (Eph. 2:3). God is angry with men. Those who tell unregenerate, unbelieving men and women, or even children, that God loves them, make a terrible presumption that is without warrant in Holy Scripture. God is angry with the wicked everyday. God loves righteousness and hates iniquity; and all men, by nature, are iniquity. God only loves sinners in Christ and for Christ’s sake. In Christ, God is love. Out of Christ, God is a consuming fire. No one has any basis for thinking that God might love him until he believes on Christ. Our faith in Christ does not cause God to love us. It is the result and evidence of God’s love (I John 4:19; Heb. 11:1).

I stopped and thought for quite some time on this statement (I added the emphasis in bold above). I know I have certainly been guilty of telling an unregenerate person that "God Loves Them." According to Mr. Fortner, I have no business doing that because I am presuming something that is not mine to know. I looked up the references that Mr. Fortner sprinkled throughout his text. Consequently I feel that this subject could stand quite a bit of scrutiny and could possibly necessitate a pretty big shift in the approach that one might take toward evangelizing the 'lost.'

What are your thoughts on this portion of this week's topic?

Are there any other statements in this week's lesson that jump out at you as this one did to me?

Shalom (שָׁלוֹם)

Curious what a secular resource might include regarding the word Shalom, I looked up the Wikipedia.com article on the word Shalom. The etymology (word origin) section was of particular interest to me. It says the following:

The word shalom derives from the root shin-lamedh-mem (ש.ל.ם), which has cognates in many Semitic languages, and means completeness, fulfillment, wellbeing, harmony, a concept usually encapsulated by translation in the word peace.

Hence usage of shalom in the Hebrew Bible often refers to conditions related to peace: safety, health and prosperity of individuals and nations.

This understanding of the origin of the word ties in nicely to some of the points that Don Fortner makes in this week's lesson regarding JEHOVAH-SHALOM and the completeness, fulfillment, wellbeing, and harmony that one can have with God only in Christ our Peace.

JEHOVAH-SHALOM

The continuing subject of the Sunday Morning Men's Bible Study class is the Names of God. The jumping off point for the lessons is the study of the same name authored by Don Fortner. This week's lesson (Lesson 5), JEHOVAH-SHALOM can be found here. Please read over the lesson prior to attending on Sunday Morning and come ready to contribute with your insights. Also, any discussion of the topic ahead of time is welcome and can be done by commenting on this article using the comment link below.

Conflicts

Sermon outline from February 4, 2007 by Pastor Scott Stout

The Conflicts

II Corinthians 5:18-19

A. The Conflict That Was

• Genesis 1:1
• Job 38:1-7 (NIV)
• Ezekiel 28:13
• Psalms 103:20-21
• Ezekiel 28:14-18
• Isaiah 14:12-15

B. The Conflict Within

• Genesis 3:21

C. The Conflict Without

• Luke 23:20-21; 24; 32-33
• Hebrews 13:11-12
• Leviticus 16:27
• II Corinthians 5:20-21

Bible Bulletin Board

Another great resource for extended Bible study is the Bible Bulletin Board (I have added it to the links on the sidebar as well). It contains broad array of searchable topic areas including, Gospel GEMs (Great Evangelical Messages), Sermons and Articles, Charles Spurgeon Collection, George Whitefield Collection, John MacArthur Collection, Recommended Books for Christians and numerous others all of which are searchable using the 'Google Powered' search field on the site. A search using the key-term 'Nissi' yielded this result. I haven't had the opportunity to read the articles in the returned search items yet, but I will endeavor to get the through the most relevant ones prior to this Sunday's class.

Jehovah Nissi - Additional Resource

I found this extensive article this morning on the subject of understanding Jehovah Nissi - The LORD is our banner. One of the things I like in particular about this article is the format. The author takes you through a series of questions that lead you to the understanding of the topic that they are advocating. Asking questions about a topic and then seeking out the Biblical answer is a discipline that we could all stand to practice more.

Have you found any additional resources regarding Jehovah Nissi in your own study this week?