Showing results by author "James Thomas Lee Jr." in All Categories

In this second part of this study of the Minor Prophets, the writings of Obadiah, Jonah, Micah, Nahum, and Habakkuk are examined. With Obadiah, one can see the land of Edom and why the Edomites had thought that they were safe from outside attackers. Their land was very mountainous and easy to defend. Nevertheless, in about 583 BC, they did fall to the Babylonians. With Jonah, one can see the viciousness of the Assyrians in the Eighth Century BC. Everyone was afraid of them because of their brutality against their enemies. Nevertheless, at the preaching of Jonah, they had repented, and the ...

The idea with this text is that the Proverbs life is a much better life. The reason for saying that is because it leads to either no unpleasant consequences or to very few unpleasant consequences. So this text is about improving a person's decision-making skills, about reducing the unpleasant consequences that result from bad decisions, and about showing that the Proverbs life produces a much better life. There is one main theme that is presented throughout. If people want to live a good life and experience very few unpleasant consequences, then they need to study the scriptures, ...

In chapter five of this epistle, James had concluded his writing to his Jewish, Christian brethren by encouraging them to not be troubled by their poverty or by their mistreatment by others. In particular, they had been hurt and victimized by wealthy landowners who had cheated them out of their wages and who had also had many of them executed. So James had written that they should be patient and trust in the Lord. They should be joyful and full of songs of praise for the Lord. They should live according to biblical standards. They should be soul-winners. They should also encourage one ...

This book has taken three fairly short books that are very similar to each other and combined them into one book. The three books are God Was in Control of Abraham's Circumstances, God Was in Control of Job's Circumstances, and God Was in Control of Joseph's Circumstances. One can learn different lessons from each saint. So it just makes sense to combine the three short books into one still fairly short book. There is one note, however, to be made with respect to the organization of this text before concluding this Introduction. Something that the reader might find useful is boxes ...

This book contains a series of short essays that discuss twenty-five of the important promises from the Lord that have been stated in the scriptures. Each of the essays is basically independent of the others. But at the same time, they have also been ordered somewhat loosely from most important to least important based upon logical order. The Lord promises to love every person. He promises to be found but not indefinitely. He promises grace for salvation and living. He promises goodness and mercy. He promises salvation that cannot be lost. He promises to not be bought. He promises to resist...

In my adult Sunday school class on December 12, 1982, I spoke to the class about the Theory of Evolution and expressed my beliefs about how that theory will lead to the Tribulation. Remarkable as such a statement may sound, I believe it to be the truth. So I have written this book to retrace the steps that led to that lecture. I hope to relate, in this summary, not just a review of that Sunday morning class, but also to provide a trail of my research. Perhaps, after reading these pages, my reader will be led to conclude, as I already have, that the end may be much nearer than we think. ...

In the first part of the third chapter of the epistle of James, the author warned spiritual leaders within the church about being God-called and about being God-prepared for their respective ministries. That warning applies to anyone who is in a position to lead others to Christ and to also show them how to live according to biblical principles and standards. So the clear teaching is that one does not actually choose his or her own ministry. Instead the Holy Spirit places saved men and women into those positions where He would have them work for Him. Once they are in those areas of ministry...

For anyone who is currently going through some kind of difficulty, the chances are very high that at least one of Solomon's principles in the book of Proverbs has been violated. Solomon was the wisest person of his times. As will be seen in the first chapter of this text, he had asked the Lord for wisdom right after having become the king of Israel. Also as will be seen, the Lord answered his prayer. James 1:5 says, "If any of you lack wisdom, let him ask of God, that giveth to all men liberally, and upbraideth not; and it shall be given him." The book of Proverbs is that answer. It is a ...

In the pages that follow, a high-level study of two general views for interpreting the scriptures will be conducted. Those two views are Covenant Theology and Dispensationalism. But the study of those views will only be done at an introductory level since the intent will be to see whether or not the Church will go through the Tribulation. Of the two, Dispensationalism seems to present the stronger case. That is because it uses a literal approach for understanding the end-time events while Covenant Theology uses a non-literal approach. Another view, called Replacement Theology, will also be ...

The main reason that I wrote this book was to remember and celebrate becoming a Christian fifty years ago. I got saved on December 14th, 1967. That means that this year, 2017, will mark my fiftieth anniversary of having walked with the Lord. It has been a quick, but rewarding, journey for me. So in grateful appreciation for all that He has meant and continues to mean to me, this book has been written as my Christmas present to the Lord. I am truly grateful that Jesus died on the cross to pay my sin debt. I am truly grateful that He has made His great salvation free to anyone who will come ...

This book will present four different Bible ways that a person can deal with depression. In a world where there are so many ups and downs and so much uncertainty, it stands to reason that every person will at least sometime experience deep depression. So the purpose of this book is to describe how some of the saints of God had handled their times of depression. In the pages that follow, the depressing circumstances of twelve people will be discussed. Two men had had to wait for a long time for something that both had really wanted. One man had had to face a possibly very angry brother. One ...

To date, I have written four complete daily devotion books. The first one was a general topic devotion book that contains a single devotion for each class that I took at Liberty University when pursuing a Graduate degree in Bible and Pastoral Counseling. The second devotion book contains a daily devotion for many of the people who are talked about in the Bible. So it is a Bible character devotion book. The third devotion book is a daily devotion for every verse in the book of Proverbs. The fascinating thing about that book is that the numerical dates in the devotion book match up with the ...

The book of Revelation is a very interesting book. With its various symbols, characters, and colorful language, it is also a very complicated book. But it is well worth studying to try to understand the future events of this world. In the pages that follow, the four main approaches that scholars have used for understanding the book of Revelation will be identified. They are the Preterist view, the Historical view, the Allegorical view, and the Futurist view. This text uses the Futurist view, which attempts to apply a literal interpretation whenever possible. This text will also identify ...

This book begins by examining the two occasions when Satan and the "sons of God" presented themselves in heaven before the Lord. A brief explanation will be offered at that time concerning the use of the term "sons of God" and what it has meant in other places in the Bible, especially in Genesis 6:2 and Genesis 6:4. From there, the discussion will show how people can know that Job actually lived and when he had probably lived. The point will even be made that some theologians believe that Moses might have been the author of the book of Job. Next, the visit to Job by his three friends will ...

In his first letter to Timothy, the Apostle Paul shared nine important truths. First, he spoke about the necessity for every saint to be called by the Holy Spirit into his or her specific ministry. Second, he indicated that salvation is by the Lord alone and that He is longsuffering with people because His desire is for them to be saved. Third, he told Timothy that the Lord wants everyone to come to the knowledge of the truth of the gospel so that they can be saved. Fourth, he told Timothy that Jesus performs the role of mediator in reconciling lost and saved sinners to God the Father. When...

This text has been written to show the clear parallels between the children of Israel having been delivered from Egyptian bondage during the offering of the first Passover lamb and the possibility for deliverance from sin and the penalty of sin by the offering of the Passover Lamb, who is Jesus. It begins in the first two chapters by explaining how the children of Israel had become slaves in Egypt. It then shares the birth of Moses, a little bit about him and his life, and how the Lord had used him to bring the children of Israel out of their bondage. Starting in chapter five of this text, ...

What I am about to say might sound confusing. But it is not meant to be. First, this book is about me. But second, this book is not about me. In the pages that follow, I will share thirteen times from my life when the Lord spoken directly to me, non-audibly, in my heart. For the first three, I did not know exactly what was happening. For the last ten occasions plus one, I was fully aware of what was happening. So in that sense, this book is about me. It will share fourteen personal experiences from my life. But this book is not really about me because the purpose is to show how anyone can ...

This book discusses most of the key events in Abraham's life as they have been recorded in the Bible. Part I will begin by discussing his life in Ur of the Chaldees when he was first told by God to go to the land where he would be led. Analysis of that instruction, along with some other Bible passages, will show that God had probably told him twice to go to a new land. It will also be pointed out that those multiple calls were not because of his disobedience. Following that discussion, when and how he probably got saved will be presented. He was not just automatically saved. He had to ...

In this book, eight brief scenarios about nine imaginary people will be presented. Even though the people will not have been modeled after anyone in particular, their intent will be to mirror what many people in this world consider the important issues of this life. The point that will be made with each scenario, however, is that every person, no matter what, will someday die. So if there is an afterlife and if that afterlife lasts forever, then rational, intelligent human beings to be rational and intelligent should be at least a little concerned about that life after death. While the ...

In the first part of the fourth chapter of the epistle of James, the author wrote about the unanswered selfish prayers of those who primarily pray for what they want. The obvious conclusion is that truly godly people should always pray for what the Lord wants of them rather than for what they might hope to get for themselves from Him. In the second part of the fourth chapter, he wrote about the importance of putting the Lord first in all things. The reasons for doing that are many. It is important to live a holy life. It is important for the saints of God to hold up each other. It is ...