Truth really can be stranger than fiction.
First Page - Now launched! All the stories are true, or based on real events. Unlimited reading for $10.00 / month. No downloads. Read on your phone, tablet or computer.
La verdad puede ser más extraña que la ficción.
First Page - ¡Ya está en marcha! Todas las historias son verídicas, o están basadas en hechos reales. Lectura ilimitada por $4.99 / mes. No hay que descargar nada. Lea en su teléfono, tableta u ordenador.
The Beauty of Staying Together (Former Title: DETOUR
Calvina, the young battered wife of Duane, is in desperate need of a new start in life. Will her jealous husband, the mad man with whom she had been unequally yoked, prove too much to ever hope for a chance of staying together--a chance to fix her troubled marriage?
We encourage you to read the two main character profiles before reading the first chapter. We can be so wrong in the strong initial opinions we form of people, which we see in The Beauty Of Staying Together (originally published under the title: Detour), a story based on true events.
¿Qué tiene que ver conmigo? por Teófila Gottfried
Lo que leemos en la Biblia tiene que ver con todos los seres humanos, sean cristianos o judíos, ateos o agnósticos, budistas, musulmanes o adherentes a alguna de las filosofías o nuevas religiones que surgen en el mundo. ¿Por qué? Ver mayor información sobre este interesante libro.
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Manna Minutes Podcast: Eye-opening Bible study in less than five minutes! Access all episodes here.
Manna Minutes en español:
Estudio bíblico que nos hace abrir los ojos en menos de cinco minutos! Acceda a todos los episodios aquí.
Manna Minutes Podcast auf Deutsch:
Augenöffnendes Bibelstudium in weniger als fünf Minuten! Alle Episoden finden Sie hier.
Peter Denies Jesus Before He Was Baptized in the Holy Spirit
Peter Denies Jesus--Three Times
The passage of Luke 22:33 reveals that the apostle Peter said to Jesus, "...Lord, I am ready to go with thee, both into prison and to death." We know how Christ responded from reading verse 34 which says, "And he (Jesus) said, I tell thee, Peter, the cock shall not crow this day before that thou shalt thrice deny that thou knowest me." This prediction of the Savior came to pass shortly afterward.
Luke 22:54-62 reads, "...And Peter followed afar off. And when they had kindled a fire in the midst of the hall and were set down together, Peter sat down among them. But a certain maid beheld him as he sat by the fire, and earnestly looked upon him and said, This man was also with him (Jesus). And he denied him, saying, Woman, I know him not. And after a little while another saw him, and said, Thou art also of them. And Peter said, Man, I am not. And about the space of one hour after another confidently affirmed, saying, Of a truth this fellow also was with him: for he is a Galilaen. And Peter said, Man, I know not what thou sayest. And immediately, while he yet spake, the cock crew. And the Lord turned, and looked upon Peter. And Peter remembered the word of the Lord, how he had said unto him, Before the cock crow, thou shalt deny me thrice. And Peter went out, and wept bitterly."
We see that Peter denies Jesus not once, not twice, but three times. Why? It is evident that Peter loved the Lord dearly and desired to serve him faithfully. Nevertheless, neither his love nor his devotion to Christ were strong enough to overcome the terror that griped him when the soldiers showed up to take Jesus away. What went wrong? How is it that Peter, as evidenced in the scriptures, later came to preach the gospel in boldness in the face of persecution and eventually martyrdom? These are among the questions to which answers are provided in this free Bible study lesson.
Before He Was Baptized in the Holy Spirit
Although Peter's love for Christ was genuine, that love of his own power was no match for the fear that those who were motivated by the Enemy instilled. Simply put, Peter had not yet been baptized in the Holy Spirit so he had no power from on high to enable him to do the "unnatural"--stand boldly for Christ when standing face to face with people inspired by the kingdom of darkness. The natural cannot fight the spiritual, but the spiritual can fight the natural.
Jesus forewarned his servants of the persecution and martyrdom to be faced by them all as he sent them to the ends of the earth to preach and teach the gospel. This is why he told them, "Wait for the promise of the Father..." (Acts 1:4). That promise was that they would all be baptized in the Holy Spirit. Christ explained to them, "But ye shall receive power, after that the Holy Ghost is come upon you: and ye shall be witnesses unto me both in Jerusalem, and in all Judaea, and in Samaria, and unto the uttermost part of the earth" (Acts 1:8).
If they were to receive power, obviously, they had been without power before being baptized in the Holy Spirit. As many early true Christians (yes, they are called Christians in the Bible) were faithful to the work God gave them, the church grew--and so did persecution and martyrdom. Much later in the book of Acts we see how other believers called on God as the threats poured against them. They prayed. They were baptized in the Holy Spirit and they proclaimed the word of God fearlessly.
Scripture reveals most if not all of their prayer as they prayed, "And now, Lord, behold their threatenings: and grant unto thy servants, that with all boldness they may speak thy word. By stretching forth thine hand to heal; and that signs and wonders may be done by the name of thy holy child Jesus. And when they had prayed, the place was shaken where they were assembled together; and they were all filled with the Holy Ghost, and they spake the word of God with boldness" (Acts 4:29-31).
What are at least two profound lessons of this free Bible study? First, having "affection" for God and being filled with God's Spirit are two different things. Second, the natural cannot fight the spiritual, but the spiritual can fight the natural. Sadly, teaching on exactly what it means to be baptized in the Holy Spirit is generally missing, in disagreement with scripture, or totally discouraged in Bible studies, Sunday sermons, Sunday school classes, and small groups. But, it is not missing in the Bible; it is not discouraged in scripture. On the contrary, God's word actually commands, not suggests, but commands that all believers receive the promise, that they be endued with power from on high--that they be baptized in the Holy Spirit.
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