The Story of Genesis: What Was God’s Will Behind Adam Naming the Animals?

The Bible says: “And out of the ground Jehovah God formed every beast of the field, and every fowl of the air; and brought them to Adam to see what he would call them: and whatever Adam called every living creature, that was the name thereof. And Adam gave names to all cattle, and to the fowl of the air, and to every beast of the field” (Genesis 2:19–20). Whenever I read these verses, I always thought: Adam named all the livestock animals, all the birds and all the beasts of the field. He must have known all these living things; otherwise how would he have come up with so many names? Or else Jehovah must have told Adam all the animals’ names beforehand, and only then did he know by which name each should be called. I pondered this issue for a long time, but I still couldn’t figure it out.

What Kind of People Are the Poor in Spirit (Matthew 5:3)?

In one of my daily devotions, I read that the Lord Jesus said, “Blessed are the poor in spirit: for theirs is the kingdom of heaven” (Matthew 5:3). I put down the Bible and began to contemplate this, “The Lord likes and blesses the poor in spirit, and theirs is the kingdom of heaven. But what kind of people are the poor in spirit? Are the poor in spirit those who appear on the outside to be humble, gentle, and loving to others?” I contemplated this for quite a while, but found no light, and I thought about it into the afternoon, when I just happened to have a meeting, where I could discuss and explore this question with my brothers and sisters.

Daily Bible Reading: What Warning Does the Lord Jesus Not Keeping the Sabbath Day Hold for Us?

Early one morning, as I was practicing my spiritual devotions, I saw this written in the Bible: “At that time Jesus went on the sabbath day through the corn; and his disciples were an hungered, and began to pluck the ears of corn and to eat. But when the Pharisees saw it, they said to him, Behold, your disciples do that which is not lawful to do on the sabbath day. But he said to them…. But I say to you, That in this place is one greater than the temple. But if you had known what this means, I will have mercy, and not sacrifice, you would not have condemned the guiltless. For the Son of man is Lord even of the sabbath day” (Matthew 12:1–3, 6–8). After reading this passage, I fell into deep thought: “In the Age of Law, Jehovah instructed the common people to keep the Sabbath. On the Sabbath day, the common people were to stop all work; if they did not stop work on that day, then that would be a sin, and they would have to be dealt with. When the Lord Jesus came to perform His work, He no longer kept the Sabbath day, but instead He led the disciples to various places to preach the gospel and to work. Why was this? What warning does the Lord Jesus doing this hold for us?” I pondered this for a long time, but still I didn’t understand.

What Is God’s Will Behind the Parable of the Master and Servant?

Ever since we were baptized and we returned to the Lord, we have often heard our pastors and elders say, “The apostle Paul said, ‘I have fought a good fight, I have finished my course, I have kept the faith: From now on there is laid up for me a crown of righteousness, which the Lord, the righteous judge, shall give me at that day: and not to me only, but to all them also that love his appearing’ (2 Timothy 4:7–8). As long as we forsake everything, work, suffer and expend ourselves for the Lord, and endure to the end, then when He returns, we will be crowned with glory, be raised up, and enter the kingdom of heaven.”

Why the Lord Jesus Gave the Keys of the Kingdom of Heaven to Peter

Baffled From Reading the Bible

When I got up early in the morning, I made a prayer, then opened up the Bible to Matthew 16:19, where the Lord Jesus says to Peter: “And I will give to you the keys of the kingdom of heaven: and whatever you shall bind on earth shall be bound in heaven: and whatever you shall loose on earth shall be loosed in heaven.” Reading this passage of scripture, I became confused, thinking: “Peter didn’t do any great work nor were the epistles he wrote very famous. On top of that, when the Lord Jesus was arrested and stood trial, Peter denied Him three times. Why didn’t the Lord give the keys of the kingdom of heaven to other disciples, but only to Peter?” I searched and searched through the Scriptures, but nothing resolved my confusion. I had no choice but to go off to work.