BELIEVER IN CHRIST AS MY BEST FRIEND

  But the LORD has become my fortress, and my God the rock in whom I take refuge. PSALMS 94:22 STR ONGHOLD- Definition:  a stronghold, fortress Usage:  a fortress, strong defense, stronghold.  a place that has been fortified so as to protect it against attack: "their mountain strongholds fell to enemy attack" a  place   that   has   been   fortified   so   as   to   protect   it   against   attack ; 1.  (Fortifications)   a   defensible   place;   fortress 2.  a  major   centre  or  area  of  predominance 2ND COR. 10:3-4  For though we walk in the flesh, we do not war according to the flesh, for the weapons of our warfare are not of the flesh, but divinely powerful for the destruction of fortresses The power of Midian prevailed against Israel. Because of Midian the sons of Israel made for themselves the dens which were in the mountains and the caves and the strongholds. JUDGES 6:2 2ND SAMUEL 5:9  DAVID  lived in the stronghold and called it the city of David. And David built

  Pride goes before destruction, a haughty spirit before a fall. PROVERBS 16:18 But he gives us more grace. That is why Scripture says: “God opposes the proud but shows favor to the humble.”JAMES 4:6 T his is what the LORD says: “Let not the wise boast of their wisdom or the strong boast of their strength or the rich boast of their riches, but let the one who boasts boast about this: that they have the understanding to know me, that I am the LORD, who exercises kindness, justice and righteousness on earth, for in these I delight,” declares the LORD. 25  “The days are coming,” declares the LORD, “when I will punish all who are circumcised only in the flesh— 26  Egypt, Judah, Edom, Ammon, Moab and all who live in the wilderness in distant places. For all these nations are really uncircumcised, and even the whole house of Israel is uncircumcised in heart.”JEREMIAH 9:23 Better to be lowly in spirit along with the oppressed than to share plunder with the proud. PROVERBS 16:19

  To   brandish   something is to wave it about aggressively, as one might   brandish   a sword or tennis racket (if it's a particularly intense game). BRANDISH  often implies that a person is wielding a physical weapon. In fact,  brandish  comes from the archaic French word  brandir , meaning "sword." However, it’s also possible to brandish objects that aren’t weapons. If you win a bowling tournament, for example, you might be inclined to brandish your shiny new trophy in front of the other competitors. Be careful, though; they might mistake your trophy for a "brandir" and respond accordingly.  Draw out also the spear, and stop the way against them that persecute me: say unto my soul, I am thy salvation. PSALMS 35:3 The descendants of Levi will surround the king, brandishing weapons in their hands, and anybody who enters the Temple will be killed. Stay near the king wherever he enters and leaves." 2 CHRONICLES 23:7 And I have made many peoples astonished a

  From a theological perspective the fourth use of authority is most significant. The question of authority is a fundamental issue facing every person, especially the believer. Its significance cannot be overestimated. Every person has an authority in life that he or she submits to as a subordinate, not by constraint but by conviction. Furthermore, God has created human beings to live under his authority. When they choose to live under a different rule, that of self or an idol, they sin. This is, in a simple summary, the teaching of Genesis 1-3. That portion of Scripture illustrates the human tendency, moved by pride, to seek independence from external authority and to establish self as the final authority in life. How, then, does God exercise his authority over creation and his creatures? The testimony of Scripture is that God has established three fundamental spheres of authority within which he delegates authority to individuals. These spheres are civil government, the home, and the

  Authority The concept of authority seldom appears in the Old Testament. It is used predominantly in the New Testament, where the word  exousia  [ ejxousiva ] functions in at least four ways. First, authority is the freedom to decide or a right to act without hindrance. All such authority begins with God, for there is no authority except from God (  Rom 13:1  ). God has the right to mold the clay as he wishes (  Rom 9:21  ) and to set times and dates (  Acts 1:7  ). God gave Paul the right to preach the gospel (  1 Co 9:18  ). Believers have the right to become children of God (  John 1:12  ), and they have freedom with respect to the law (  1 Co 8:9  ). While authority is valueless without the power to make it effective, we can make a fine distinction between the two concepts. This first understanding of authority, then, is distinct from power and refers primarily to a prerogative. Second, the concept of authority refers to the power, ability, or capability to complete an action. Jes

  Amen has other uses. Jeremiah mocks the words of a false prophet with an amen (28:6). Because God is trustworthy, Isaiah can call him "the God of amen, " in whose name his servants should invoke blessings and take oaths (   Isa 65:16   ; see also   Rev 3:14   ). But Jesus' use of amen is the most striking innovation. Jesus introduces his teaching by saying  amen lego humin  [ ajmhvn levgw uJmi'n ], that is, "truly I say to you, " on nearly seventy occasions in the Gospels (thirty times in Matthew, thirteen in Mark, six in Luke, and twenty in John, where the amen is always doubled). Where the prophets often said, "Thus says the Lord, " Jesus often says, "Amen  I  say to you." Although some scholars see the formuLam merely as a method of giving emphasis to a statement, in actuality it constitutes a significant part of Jesus' implicit teaching about himself. We ought to consider Jesus' use of the term "amen" alongside his

  Abaddon   [N]   [E]   [H]   [S] In the Book of Revelation (  9:1-11  ), when John sees his vision of the fifth trumpet blowing, a vast horde of demonic horsemen is seen arising from the newly opened abyss. They are sent forth to torment the unfortunate inhabitants of earth, but not to kill them. They have a ruler over them, called a king ( basileia  [ basileiva ]), the angel of the abyss, whose name is given in both Hebrew and Greek. In Hebrew it is Abaddon and in Greek Apollyon, both words meaning Destroyer or Destruction. The word only occurs once in the New Testament (  Rev 9:11  ) and five times in the Old Testament (  Job 26:6  ;  28:22  ;  31:12  ;  Psalm 88:11  ;  Prov 15:11  ). In Psalm 88:11 Destruction is parallel to the grave; in Job 26:6 and Proverbs 26:6 it is parallel to Sheol; in Job 28:22 it is parallel to Death. job 31:12 says sin is a fire that burns to destruction. So in the Old Testament Abaddon means the place of utter ruin, death, desolation, or destruction. The