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A women's free Bible study on God's love
with commentary, homework, and
audio devotions
posted 6/5/2009
Dearest Ladies,
When I first decided to do this study on God's love some years back, I was going to look up every Bible verse on love and go from there. However the Holy Spirit made it very clear to me to write about God and what He has done for us. This is because God’s actions scream of His love for us!
In reality true love, which is God’s love, doesn’t depend on what a person does or who she is but on the one loving. In this study I felt getting to know the One who loves us so very much and His actions of love towards us was a must. So the purpose of this study on God’s love is to enable you to get to know Him and His acts of love. One of the ways we will do this is to study God’s characteristics.
Why is it so important as a Christian, to truly know God and His love? It is because God asks you to have faith in Him and love Him. And how can you possibly trust in and love someone whom you don’t know? God also asks you to believe that He loves you so very much! And how can you believe that He loves you if you don’t know that He does? As Christians, the more we get to know God and comprehend His love through His Word and what He has done for us, the more passionately we will want to trust and love Him. In reality the more we trust and love God, the stronger and more mature Christians we will be.
As you will see in this study the foundation of God’s love is Jesus Christ! So you will study Jesus Christ and what He has done for you. You will hear about His love starting before eternity past, how He created you to love you, how His love stood unyielding even after the first sin, and how and why He was born, lived and died for you. You will understand why He pursued and loved you to be His. You will see that He died for you when you were His enemy. You will learn how His love gave you eternal life and made you His Bride. You will hear how and why He redeemed you from slavery to sin to make you His Father’s beloved daughter. Rejoice ladies, you are truly His loved princesses!
because of God's love - Gini
Course outline
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Bible devotions for women
A women’s devotional series on – getting to know the One True God, by studying
His Characteristics.
posted 2/11/2010
revised 2/28/2010
When someone says “God,” what do you think of? In the book, The Shack by William P. Young, God the Father is made out to be a friendly woman. People have said, “The Shack makes me crave God’s presence.” There is a huge problem with this because they are yearning after a man-made fantasy of God, instead of God Himself. To describe God in such human terms, I believe, is doing what the second of the Ten Commandments tells us not to do.
You shall not make for yourself an idol in the form of anything in heaven above or on the earth beneath or in the waters below. Exodus 20:4 (NIV)
Since God the Father is Spirit (John 4:24), no man-made representation can possibly resemble Him! To make an image of God by using something that is familiar, pleasant, or even powerful or supernatural to you, instead of the God who is presented in His Word, is just plain sin.
One of the reasons I decided to write this series of devotions on God’s characteristics is because The Shack is such a popular book. Since this book is a bestseller, I figured people had a strong desire to know and understand the God of the universe. Do you?
God is zealous that devotion be given exclusively to Him, and not to a false image of Him. Wouldn’t it be disheartening to have someone not to like you for who you are, so they make up a fictitious you? My family wanted me to be different than I was, but at least they didn’t make up a pretend child. When we don’t take the time to get to know the real God - and He wrote a Book so we could - we are being very dishonoring and even slandering Him. Ouch! We need to recognize God for Who He is, not who our imagination or someone else’s imagination makes Him out to be! And we can know the real Him through the knowledge and understanding that comes from His Word.
- Read Exodus 20:1-7 and Isaiah 44:6-17. When we create God in our mind contrary to His Word, we are fashioning a false god (idol) and serving it. In other words, we are not trusting in God and giving Him the devotion He deserves, but instead we are trusting in and worshipping some man-made god! Just to remind you, this is sin! Read Hosea 3:1, 4:12, 5:4. What have you learned about the dangers of creating God in your mind contrary to His Word?
to continue go to:
think rightly about God
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There is life after this earthly existence...even fishing!
3/10/2010
One of my fond memories as a child was to go fishing with my grandfather. We would pack up the tackle box, and grab our poles and walk to the lake. We would sit on the old wooden dock and hang our feet over brownish water. I would say to him, “Can I go swimming?” And He would say, “That isn’t wise, because a water-moccasin may bite you.” I didn’t like to put a worm on the hook. So this meant my grandfather was constantly putting the bait on, because I would jerk my hook around, and the poor worms would go flying. As we were fishing we would enjoy the beauty of our surrounding. There were big trees all around us, because it was central Florida. I remember there was a wild tangerine tree not to far from the shore that I would eat from often. I still think of how plentiful and sweet the fruit was.
Someday in the distant future (or maybe not too distant) the Lord of Lords and the King of Kings will return to earth along with His redeemed people - on white horses I should add. Don’t worry if you don’t ride horses, you will then.
…For the time has come for the wedding feast of the Lamb, and his bride has prepared herself. She has been given the finest of pure white linen to wear. For the fine linen represents the good deeds of God’s holy people…For the essence of prophecy is to give a clear witness for Jesus. Then I saw heaven opened, and a white horse was standing there. Its rider was named Faithful and True, for he judges fairly and wages a righteous war. His eyes were like flames of fire, and on his head were many crowns…He wore a robe dipped in blood, and his title was the Word of God. The armies of heaven, dressed in the finest of pure white linen, followed him on white horses. From his mouth came a sharp sword to strike down the nations. He will rule them… On his robe at his thigh was written this title: King of all kings and Lord of all lords. Revelation 19:7-16 (NLT)
King Jesus Christ will then set up an earthly kingdom and rule it for a thousand years. This kingdom will be ruled in righteousness, justice and love. (I can’t wait!) This thousand year reign is talked about all throughout the Bible. In the last chapters of the book of Ezekiel, the temple of this kingdom is talked about in depth.
As I read Ezekiel 47 - it vividly became alive to me. It talks about the abundant water that will flow from Jesus’ temple, in His kingdom. The water coming from this temple makes the area of Israel like the Garden of Eden. The Dead Sea becomes fresh water that is alive with life in it. Fishermen will come to enjoy the abundance of fish in the now thriving sea! As you can appreciate, my happy memories of my childhood came back to me as I read this chapter. It makes me yearn for the time I will sit by this sea and fish with my grandfather again. Do you long for the time Jesus will reign on this earth? (Read Ezekiel 47 and Revelations 20 also John 3:16, 14:1-3)
Because of His death, life will reign again! Gini
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