NIV Life Application Study Bible, Large Print

Life Application Study Bible-NIV-Large Print\ \ By Zondervan Bible Publishers \ Zondervan Publishing Company\ Copyright © 2001 Zondervan Bible Publishers\ All right reserved. \ ISBN: 0310927137 \ \ \ \ Chapter One\ GENESIS\ VITAL STATISTICS\ PURPOSE: To record God's creation of the world and his desire to have a people set apart to worship him\ AUTHOR: Moses\ TO WHOM WRITTEN: The people of Israel\ DATE WRITTEN: 1450-1410 B.C.\ SETTING: The region presently known as the Middle East\ KEY VERSES: "So God created man in his own image, in the image of God he created him; male and female he created them." (1:27) "'I will make you into a great nation and I will bless you; I will make your name great, and you will be a blessing. I will bless those who bless you, and whoever curses you I will curse; and all peoples on earth will be blessed through you.'" (12:2, 3).\ KEY PEOPLE: Adam, Eve, Noah, Abraham, Sarah, Isaac, Rebekah, Jacob, Joseph\ BEGIN ... start ... commence ... open.... There's something refreshing and optimistic about these words, whether they refer to the dawn of a new day, the birth of a child, the prelude of a symphony, or the first miles of a family vacation. Free of problems and full of promise, beginnings stir hope and imaginative visions of the future. Genesis means "beginnings" or "origin," and it unfolds the record of the beginning of the world, of human history, of family, of civilization, of salvation. It is the story of God's purpose and plan for his creation. As the book of beginnings, Genesis sets the stage for the entire Bible. It reveals the person and nature of God (Creator, Sustainer, Judge, Redeemer); the value and dignity of human beings (made in God's image, saved by grace, used by God in the world); the tragedy and conesquences of sin (the fall, separation from God, judgment); and the promise and assurance of salvation (covenant, forgiveness, promised Messiah).\ God. That's where Genesis begins. All at once we see him creating the world in a majestic display of power and purpose, culminating with a man and woman made like himself (1:26, 27). But before long sin entered the world, and Satan was unmasked. Bathed in innocence, creation was shattered by the fall (the willful disobedience of Adam and Eve). Fellowship with God was broken, and evil began weaving its destructive web. In rapid succession, we read how Adam and Even were expelled from the beautiful garden, their first son turned murderer, and evil bred evil until God finally destroyed everyone on earth except a small family led by Noah, the only godly person left.\ As we come to the Abraham on the plains of Canaan, we discover the beginning of God's covenant people and the broad strokes of his salvation plan: salvation comes by faith, Abraham's descendants will be God's people, and the Savior of the world will come through this chosen nation. The stories of Isaac, Jacob, and Joseph which follow are more than interesting biographies. They emphasize the promises of God and the proof that he is faithful. The people we meet in Genesis are simple, ordinary people, yet through them, God did great things. These are vivid pictures of how God can and does use all kinds of people to accomplish his good purposes ... even people like you and me.\ Read Genesis and be encouraged. There is hope! No matter how dark the world situation seems, God has a plan. No matter how insignificant or useless you feel, God loves you and wants to use you in his plan. No matter how sinful and separated from God you are, his salvation is available. Read Genesis ... and hope!\ 15 Then God said to Noah, 16 "Come out of the ark, you and your wife and your sons and their wives. 17 Bring out every kind of living creature that is with you-the birds, the animals, and all the creatures that move along the ground-so they can multiply on the earth and be fruitful and increase in number upon it."\ 18 So Noah came out, together with his sons and his wife and his sons' wives. 19 All the animals and all the creatures that move along the ground and all the birds-everything that moves on the earth-came out of the ark, one kind after another.\ 20 Then Noah built an altar to the Lord and, taking some of all the clean animals and clean birds, he sacrificed burnt offerings on it. 21 The Lord smelled the pleasing aroma and said in his heart: "Never again will I curse the ground because of man, even though every inclination of his heart is evil from childhood. And never again will I destroy all living creatures, as I have done.\ 22 "As long as the earth endures, seedtime and harvest, cold and heat, summer and winter,\ NOAH\ The story of Noah's life involves not one, but two great and tragic floods. The world in Noah's day was flooded with evil. The number of those who remembered the God of creation, perfection, and love had dwindled to one. Of God's people, only Noah was left. God's response to the severe situation was a 120-year-long last chance during which he had Noah build a graphic illustration of the message of his life. Nothing like a huge boat on dry land to make a point! For Noah, obedience meant a long-term commitment to a project.\ Many of us have trouble sticking to any project, whether or not it is directed by God. It is interesting that the length of Noah's obedience was greater than the lifespan of people today. The only comparable long-term project is our very lives. But perhaps this is one great challenge Noah's life gives us-to live, in acceptance of God's grace, an entire lifetime of obedience and gratitude.\ Strengths and accomplishments:\ Only follower of God left in his generation\ Second father of the human race\ Man of patience, consistency, and obedience\ First major shipbuilder\ Weakness and mistake:\ Got drunk and embarrassed himself in front of his sons\ Lessons from his life:\ God is faithful to those who obey him\ God does not always protect us from trouble, but cares for us in spite of trouble\ Obedience is a long-term commitment\ A man may be faithful, but his sinful nature always travels with him\ Vital statistics:\ Where: We're not told how far from the Garden of Eden people had settled\ Occupation: Farmer, shipbuilder, preacher\ Relatives: Grandfather: Methuselah. Father: Lamech. Sons: Ham, Shem, and Japheth\ Key Verse:\ "Noah did everything just as God commanded him" (Genesis 6:22).\ Noah's story is told in Genesis 5:29-10:32. He is also mentioned in 1 Chronicles 1:3, 4; Isaiah 54:9; Ezekiel 14:14, 20; Matthew 24:37, 38; Luke 3:36; 17:26, 27; Hebrews 11:7; 1 Peter 3:20; 2 Peter 2.5.\ MATTHEW 15:33\ 33 His disciples answered, "Where could we get enough bread in this remote place to feed such a crowd?"\ 34 "How many loaves do you have?" Jesus asked.\ "Seven," they replied, "and a few small fish."\ 35 He told the crowd to sit down on the ground. 36 Then he took the seven loaves and the fish, and when he had given thanks, he broke them and gave them to the disciples, and they in turn to the people. 37 They all ate and were satisfied. Afterward the disciples picked up seven basketfuls of broken pieces that were left over. 38 The number of those who ate was four thousand, besides women and children. 39 After Jesus had sent the crowd away, he got into the boat and went to the vicinity of Magadan.\ Religious Leaders Ask for a Sign in the Sky (106/Mark 8:11-13)\ 16 The Pharisees and Sadducees came to Jesus and tested him by asking him to show them a sign from heaven.\ 2 He replied, "When evening comes, you say, 'It will be fair weather, for the sky is red,' 3 and in the morning, 'Today it will be stormy, for the sky is red and overcast.' You know how to interpret the appearance of the sky, but you cannot interpret the signs of the times. 4 A wicked and adulterous generation looks for a miraculous sign, but none will be given it except the sign of Jonah." Jesus then left them and went away.\ Jesus Warns against Wrong Teaching (107/Mark 8:14-21)\ 5 When they went across the lake, the disciples forgot to take bread. 6 "Be careful," Jesus said to them. "Be on your guard against the yeast of the Pharisees and Sadducees."\ 7 They discussed this among themselves and said, "It is because we didn't bring any bread."\ 8 Aware of their discussion, Jesus asked, "You of little faith, why are you talking among yourselves about having no bread? 9 Do you still not understand? Don't you remember the five loaves for the five thousand, and how many basketfuls you gathered? 10 Or the seven loaves for the four thousand, and how many basketfuls you gathered? 11 How is it you don't understand that I was not talking to you about bread? But be on your guard against the yeast of the Pharisees and Sadducees."\ \ \ Continues... \ \ \ \ Excerpted from Life Application Study Bible-NIV-Large Print by Zondervan Bible Publishers Copyright © 2001 by Zondervan Bible Publishers. Excerpted by permission.\ All rights reserved. No part of this excerpt may be reproduced or reprinted without permission in writing from the publisher.\ Excerpts are provided by Dial-A-Book Inc. solely for the personal use of visitors to this web site. \ \