Get Up With God
highly caffeinated daily bible doses to help start your morning off right

We’re counting down the top ten Bible verses of all time, based on an exhaustive study conducted by research scientists with very large brains (and apparently a lot of time on their hands) who determined how often each verse has appeared in print.

Drum roll, please. Here’s the absolute #1 most popular Bible verse in the history of the world. You learned it in Sunday School. You’ve seen it on banners at sporting events. Maybe you’ve even got it tattooed on your biceps.

But don’t let familiarity rob it of its power and truth. Pray through every single precious word right now with all your heart and thank God for his mind-blowing love.

For God so loved the world
that he gave his one and only Son,
that whoever believes in him
shall not perish
but have eternal life.
(John 3:16)

BELIEVE!

We’re counting down the top ten Bible verses of all time, according to research scientists with very large brains who determined how often each verse has appeared in print.

Here’s VERSE #2 . . .

In the beginning was the Word,
and the Word was with God,
and the Word was God.
(John 1:1)

Many of God’s biggest mysteries are packed into this beautiful little verse. Let’s try and unpack ‘em a bit.

What — or who — is “the Word”? “The Word” is a translation of the Greek term logos. It had big-time meaning for both Jews and non-Jews.

To Jews, the Word signified a personal, divine communication from God to his people. To non-Jews, the Word was the impersonal “divine reason” that ruled the universe. John chose a term he knew would resonate with both audiences.

John used it here to refer to God’s ultimate living word: Jesus.

What does the rest of the verse mean? A very smart Bible scholar named Merrill Tenney says it speaks of Jesus’ preexistence, distinctiveness and deity. In other words, Jesus (1) was there in the beginning, (2) is a separate and distinct person from the Father and yet (3) is fully God himself.

LISTEN TO THE WORD

We’re counting down the top ten Bible verses of all time, based on an exhaustive study conducted by research scientists with very large brains (and apparently a lot of time on their hands) who determined how often each verse has appeared in print.

Here’s VERSE #3,  straight from the mouth of Jesus . . .

I am the way and the truth and the life.
No one comes to the Father except through me.
(John 14:6)

Read the first line again. Notice that Jesus doesn’t say that he’s “a way” or “one way.” He is THE way and THE truth and THE life.

Read the second line again. There are no exceptions. NO ONE comes to the Father except through Jesus.

People often try to soften the starkness of Jesus’ words or to complicate the simplicity of his message. He made it 100% clear who he is: God’s only son and our only hope.

FOLLOW JESUS: HE’S THE ONLY WAY

We’re counting down the top ten Bible verses of all time, based on an exhaustive study conducted by research scientists with very large brains (and apparently a lot of time on their hands) who determined how often each verse has appeared in print.

Here’s VERSE #4 . . .

Therefore, go and make disciples of all nations,
baptizing them in the name of the Father
and of the Son and of the Holy Spirit,
and teaching them to obey everything I have commanded you.
(Matthew 28:19-20a)

Those were among Jesus’ last words here on earth. That’s what the “therefore” is there for — it sums up nicely Jesus’ game plan for his followers. That plan?

MAKE DISCIPLES

I have to confess something right now: I’m a guy.

I don’t know about you, but most guys I know don’t get real real easily. I’ve been with lots of guys in lots of Bible studies over the years and, unfortunately, lots of our discussions go something like this:

Leader: How are you guys doing?

All: Great.

Bob: How ’bout them Packers?

All: Yeah.

Dave: Boy, it sure is cold today.

All: Yeah.

Fred: Pass the donuts.

All: Yeah.

Sometimes, it’s not until you meet one-on-one with a person that things start to open up a little. Have lunch with some apparently happy someone in your life and you may be shocked to discover that — just like you — they struggle with sin. People I thought I knew well have suddenly revealed that they face addictions, depression, anxiety, fear, loneliness, doubt, temptation, ethical dilemmas, marital strife – things they never disclosed during group get-togethers.

Heed Jesus’ call to action. Get off the couch and get in the game. Get real with the people in your life. Invite ‘em to breakfast. Treat ‘em to lunch. Listen to their stories. And then tell ‘em yours. Start making disciples today. And remember that you’re never alone in this endeavor.

Here’s how Jesus concluded his above remarks:

And surely I am with you always,
to the very end of the age.
(Matthew 28:20b)

We’re counting down the top ten Bible verses of all time based on an exhaustive analysis conducted by research scientists with very large brains (and apparently a lot of time on their hands) who determined how many times each verse has appeared in print.

Here’s VERSE #5 . . .

All have sinned and fall short of the glory of God.
(Romans 3:23)

Everybody sins and falls short of God’s glory. You. Me. Your pastor. Billy Graham. Mother Teresa. The Apostle Paul. EVERYBODY.

God makes it 1,296% clear that we can’t work our way into heaven on our own no matter how hard we try. If that’s the way you approach your life, it’s a bit like being in a high-jump competition where after years of training, vitamin supplements and maybe even steroids and blood doping your best effort barely clears three feet — but the qualifying height is a googleplex times infinity plus a zillion miles. You’ll always, always, always come up short.

So, what’s the solution? The Apostle Paul grappled with that very question in the greatest Bible tongue-twister of all time . . .

I do not understand what I do.
For what I want to do,
I do not do,
but what I hate,
I do.

And if I do what I do not want to do,
I agree that the law is good.
As it is, it is no longer I myself who do it,
but it is the sin living in me.
I know that nothing good lives in me,
that is, in my sinful nature.
For I have the desire to do what is good,
but I cannot carry it out.
For what I do is not the good I want to do;
no, the evil I do not want to do –
this I keep on doing.
Now if I do what I do not want to do,
it is no longer I who do it,
but it is sin living in me that does it.
(Romans 7:15-20)

Basically, it’s a war. Paul continues:

So I find this law at work:
When I want to do good, evil is right there with me.
For in my inner being I delight in God’s law;
but I see another law at work in the members of my body,
waging war against the law of my mind
and making me a prisoner of the law of sin
at work within my members.

What a wretched man I am!
Who will rescue me from this body of death?
Praise be to God — through Jesus Christ our Lord!
(Romans 7:21-25)

Paul’s conclusion?

Therefore, there is no condemnation
for those who are in Christ Jesus,
because through Christ Jesus the law of the Spirit of life
set me free from the law of sin and death.
For what the law was powerless to do
in that it was weakened by the sinful nature,
God did by sending his own Son
in the likeness of sinful man to be a sin offering.

Those who live according to the sinful nature
have their minds set on what that nature desires;
but those who live in accordance with the Spirit
have their minds set on what the Spirit desires.
The mind of the sinful man is death,
but the mind controlled by the Spirit is life and peace.
(Romans 8:1-3, 5-6a)

So, stop jumping on your own and let Jesus carry you. It’s a matter of life and death.

LET JESUS SET YOU FREE

We’re counting down the top ten Bible verses of all time, based on an exhaustive study conducted by research scientists with very large brains who determined how often each verse has appeared in print.

Here’s VERSE #6. Ponder it deep in your heart and then thank God for his astonishing, astounding, amazing grace.

For it is by grace you have been saved,
through faith –
and this not from yourselves,
it is the gift of God.
(Ephesians 2:8)

We’re counting down the top ten Bible verses of all time, based on an exhaustive study conducted by research scientists with very large brains who determined how often each verse has appeared in print.

Here’s VERSE #7. Meditate on it. Marinate in it. Memorize it.

In the beginning
God created the heavens and the earth.
(Genesis 1:1)

Most of us have seen this verse dozens of times. But don’t let familiarity rob it of its power.

This is where it all starts. We didn’t get here by accident. There is a creator. Comprehending that simple, beautiful truth changes everything.

Knowing that God himself created this world and all that is in it — including you and me — gives us all dignity, meaning, hope and a purpose. So, here’s the question: What are you doing with your God-created life?

YOU ARE GOD’S CREATION

We’re counting down the top ten Bible verses of all time, based on an exhaustive study conducted by research scientists with very large brains who determined how often each verse has appeared in print.

Here’s VERSE #8. Pray through it. Wrestle with it. Memorize it. And then live it.

But you will receive power
when the Holy Spirit comes on you;
and you will be my witnesses
in Jerusalem, and in all Judea and Samaria,
and to the ends of the earth.
(Acts 1:8)

Before the disciples received power from the Holy Spirit, they were basically a bunch of terrified nincompoops. They all scattered when Jesus got arrested One was so scared that he jumped right out of his clothes and fled naked. Even Peter denied knowing Jesus. They ended up huddled together, hiding and confused and wondering what in the world to do next.

But then the Holy Spirit came and fired them up. Literally. Tongues of flame descended on them to let ‘em know that God was right there with ‘em. Fueled by the Holy Spirit, they were transformed from nincompoops to champions for God who were willing to die for what they believed in.

We have the same power available to us. The power that created life. The power that conquered death. Holy Spirit power. He’s ready to work with you 24/7/365 starting right now.

GET FIRED UP

We’re counting down the top ten Bible verses of all time, based on an exhaustive study conducted by research scientists with very large brains who determined how often each verse appears in print.

Here’s VERSE #9. Memorize it. Meditate on it. Marinate in it.

All Scripture is God-breathed
and is useful for teaching, rebuking,
correcting and training in righteousness,
so that the man of God may be
thoroughly equipped for every good work. 
(2 Timothy 3:16)

READ THE BIBLE.
ALL OF IT. 
START NOW.

Following up on yesterday’s post in which I shared my favorite Bible verses, I thought it might be fun to count down the official top ten Bible verses of all time, based on an exhaustive study by research scientists with very large brains who determined how often each verse in the Bible has been referenced.

Without further ado, here’s VERSE #10 . . .

If you confess with your mouth,
“Jesus is Lord,”
and believe in your heart
that God raised him from the dead,
you will be saved.
(Romans 10:9)

What a great place to start. Here’s the choice:

1. Life apart from God in sin, anxiety and eternal torment OR

2. Life with God in eternal love, joy and peace.

Hmm. Seems pretty obvious to me.

But how do we get there?

By God’s grace through faith. (Ephesians 2:8)

OK, but what exactly is “faith”?

It’s all about a loving relationship with God. Even though sin broke that relationship, God provides a way back through Jesus.

Faith isn’t mere knowledge of facts. We’re saved when we believe deep in our hearts that Jesus died for our sins and was resurrected and we trust him alone to save us.

If you’re at all unsure about your eternal destiny, here’s a prayer you can pray right now. But it can’t be mere words — it has to come from your heart.

Dear Jesus,
I admit that I’m a sinner
and that I need your forgiveness.
I believe that you died for my sins
and that you were raised from the dead.
I want to turn from my sins and follow you.
I ask you to come into my heart
and to take control of my life
through the Holy Spirit.

Amen

So, what happens next?

Let the Holy Spirit work in your life. Pray continually. Read the Bible. Hang out with other believers. If you truly let the Holy Spirit take control, you’ll start to see amazing things: love, joy, peace, patience, kindness, goodness, faithfulness, gentleness and self-control (Galatians 5:22-23).

Here’s one last verse to ponder:

Yet to all who received him,
to those who believed in his name,
he gave the right to become children of God.
(John 1:12)

WELCOME TO THE FAMILY!