Question #1:
Dr. Luginbill,
I decided to put up an actual statement of faith on my blog because it seems so common for other people to do so. I do notice that Ichthys does not seem to have one (though I'm sure anything that you would say is covered in far more detail in the whole wealth of information on your site). Is there a particular reason why one should or shouldn't have one, and is there a particular reason why Ichthys doesn't?
Response #1:
Dear Friend,
I get this question rather a lot. As far as the Ichthys ministry is concerned, I teach what I believe and I do so in every posting and in every major study. The materials themselves are the "statement of faith". Picking out a few aspects of a few major doctrines and listing them out would be an over-simplification and could easily lead to mis-impressions. I do understand why you and others wish to do so (on a blog I think it has benefits); but for this ministry I feel doing so would be "dumbing down" the depth of what would otherwise be gotten if a person spends a minute reading.
What I do say in this regard can be found at the link: "About Ichthys".
In Jesus our Lord,
Bob L.
Question #2:
Do you sell your materials already bound? I am very interested in The Satanic Rebellion and The Coming Tribulation. Are they only available by internet or can they be purchased? Thank you!
Response #2:
Good to make your acquaintance.
These materials are available digitally only. I have purposely avoided making them commercially available (if interested in the reasons, please see the link: Ichthys Books). Essentially, I am unwilling to cede any rights, and I also have an issue with people having to pay money for these materials. They are available in four different digital forms, however: HTML, Adobe PDF, MSWord, and WordPerfect. Some readers print them off, and it is also possible to have services such as Kinko's do the same and even bind them.
Sorry not to be able to give you a more satisfactory answer, but I do appreciate your interest and your enthusiasm for God's Word!
In Jesus our dear Lord and Savior,
Bob Luginbill
Question #3:
Thank you so much! I have to tell you I am so grateful that I happened onto your site. I was researching 1st Corinthians 14 and googled onto your information. I did not want to stop reading. I really appreciate the fact that you reference specific scriptures. People like me benefit so much from your hard work. It is obvious you have dedicated much of your life to this ministry. I truly appreciate you sharing your research. You certainly have the gift of teaching. Thank you again so much!
Response #3:
You're very welcome!
Thanks so much for your encouraging words.
Write any time.
In Jesus our dear Lord and Savior,
Bob L.
Question #4:
Hi,
I am a seminary student. I came across this work the Satanic Rebellion quite by accident and wondering if it had been published anywhere so I could use some of Dr. Luginbill's thoughts in a paper about the fall of Satan and God's omniscience.
Blessings,
Response #4:
Good to make your acquaintance, and thanks much for you interest in this ministry.
As to your question, I have purposefully kept these works from being published in a traditional manner in order to be able to offer them freely over the internet without restriction from some publisher (see the link: FAQ #1).
From the standpoint of scholarship, there are more and more resources in all fields nowadays which are only available electronically (e.g., Wikipedia articles). I would suggest consulting whatever style-guide your seminary or individual professor requires you to use; I am sure they have a preferred method of citation for internet sources, should you wish to cite these or other online materials.
Best wishes for your project.
In Jesus Christ our dear Lord and Savior,
Bob Luginbill
Question #5:
Some of your articles are 100+ pages long. Do you have printed material to purchase?
Response #5:
Good to make your acquaintance, and thanks so much for your interest in this ministry.
To answer your question, I have deliberately avoided making these materials through traditional distribution channels, precisely to avoid anything monetary. That does entail the complication you notice. The PDF files admit of being read by numerous programs, which may ease the process a bit. Here is a link to explain my position on this:
FAQ #1 "Books: Are these studies available in printed format?"
Yours in our dear Lord and Savior Jesus Christ.
Bob Luginbill
Question #6:
Dr. Robert D. Luginbill:
I have found your website and am very interested in your views. I have compiled many of your studies for my own use. Of course I am giving you credit where credit is due. I want to use them to compile some "Personal Books" for Logos Bible Software users. It would be offered freely and Logos would not have any say over its content. I have attached one such document that I would use for your perusal. It has to be in a docx format and the logos sw compiles it for use in the Logos sw. I would like to share the files with logos users. I think there would be much interest. I am asking for permission to do so and if so, please could I have it in writing, at least by email. Thank you for all your hard work.
Response #6:
Good to make your acquaintance. I have no problem with this proposal, just as long as it doesn't involve any ceding of copyright for any of these materials. My position on this can be found at the link: "About Ichthys" under point 2), "Copy Policy".
Thanks much for sharing the Word of God!
In Jesus Christ our dear Lord and Savior,
Bob Luginbill
Question #7:
May I have your permission to reprint part of your message on Matthew 21:21, Faith to Move Mountains for a morning devotion?
Response #7:
Good to make your acquaintance. You may certainly have permission. As I say at the link (copy policy), as long as a person does not try to sell these materials or represent them as his/her own, I am happy to have them copied.
Best wishes for your devotion!
Yours in Jesus our dear Lord,
Bob Luginbill
Question #8:
Removal request.
Copyrighted content has been found on your site at the following link; ending with author name ___.
Please immediately remove the illegal content.
Thank you.
Response #8:
Dear Friend,
As per your request, the material noted has been removed from the page cited at Ichthys.
I am happy to do so. However, I strenuously object to your characterization of this posting as "illegal". The material came to me as a quotation in an email, and I had no way of knowing that it had been copyrighted or that there would be any objection to posting the quoted material (most people are happy to have portions of their work posted for the publicity it produces).
Given the reasonable citation and fair use doctrines, whether you would be able to prevail in a legal contest on this matter is debatable. I will say, however, that a simple request for removal without accusations and threats strikes me as a more Christian approach – at least as a first attempt.
In Jesus our dear Lord,
Bob L.
Question #9:
Dr. Luginbill,
How is this effort, ICHTHYS.com supported?
Do you accept donations?
Response #9:
Very good to hear from you again – and thank you for the spiritual concern motivating your question. Here is a link which explains things on that score:
Yours in Jesus Christ, the ineffable Gift,
Bob L.
Question #10:
Through you, as a true witness, GOD has taught me about true faith, the true Word, and true service. May your GOD and Father and his Son continue to bless you and keep you in the Holy Spirit.
Response #10:
Thanks for understanding, and thanks for your good words and for your prayers.
In Jesus,
Bob L.
Question #11:
Hello Professor, where do I send my offerings?
Love you in the Lord!
Response #11:
Thank you so much, my friend, for your generous attitude and your desire to please the Lord in this as in all things.
However, it has been the policy of this ministry since inception not to solicit donations (for the details, please see FAQ #9: "Contributions: Can I make a contribution to this ministry?").
As a possible alternative, have you had an opportunity to look at Pastor-Teacher Curtis Omo's Bible Academy (see the link)? I think his email for this YouTube channel is: bibleacademy.curt@aol.com
His is a ministry much like my own in terms of content, and very worthy of support.
I appreciate you in the Lord!
Bob L.
Question #12:
To Dr. Luginbill, or To Whom It May Concern:
Do you still respond to questions concerning the Bible?
Response #12:
As part of the Ichthys web-ministry, it is my pleasure to answer Bible questions of all kinds for believers who are trying to get closer to Jesus Christ (or unbelievers who are trying to find Him).
Fire away, and I'll do what I can to answer your questions.
In Jesus Christ our dear Lord and Savior,
Bob Luginbill
Question #13:
Dear Sir,
Are all the pages from your site available on DVD or in other forms ?
Thanks
Response #13:
Good to make your acquaintance.
The studies at Ichthys are available only over the internet, but are offered in a variety of forms. In addition to the web pages, you can also download any of this material in MS Word, Adobe PDF, or WordPerfect formats (please see the link: Downloads).
I hope this will be helpful to you.
Yours in our dear Lord and Savior Jesus Christ,
Bob Luginbill
Question #14:
Thanks much.
I want to have access to this valuable information in case of losing internet access. I fear that Bibles and Christian literature on and off the internet that are of a sound evangelical nature are in danger of soon becoming classified as hate speech. What you have done confirms so much of my belief system that I am amazed. I will download all of it.
Response #14:
You're very welcome.
Makes sense to me – that's one of the reasons all of this material is available for download. Once the Tribulation begins, and once the beast takes over, it will no doubt be very difficult to access any sort of good Bible teaching via any means. Not that it's easy to find now, but the present dearth of course is for different reasons.
Yours in our dear Lord Jesus Christ,
Bob L.
Question #15:
Dear Professor,
I was about to write to you to check if everything is well with you when I noticed that the weekly email posting has not been updated, as you've been doing it so regularly for a long time, but then I clicked on "Emails", saw yesterday's date and realized that it's just the front page that refers to responses from a fortnight ago.
Nevertheless, I thought I would write anyway - how are things with you? I remember you in my prayers daily.
In Christ our Lord,
Response #15:
Hello my friend!
I think if you refresh your browser you will see that the posting info for the 25th of May is the same on both the home and email pages. However, you are correct that I missed the week of the 18th. I was making my semi-annual trip up to Detroit to visit my 92 year old mother and also my brother and his family. I don't have access to a computer up there, and so since the trip was a week long and bracketed the weekend, I skipped the week. This will probably happen over Christmas week too.
Thanks for keeping up with me. I sometimes worry that if I got hit by a bus or something like that, the site would fall off the internet without anyone knowing what transpired. I should probably give that a little bit of thought (or at least avoid buses).
Thank you so much for your prayers and for your concern. The next couple of months will be a critical time. I hope that everything will be satisfactorily resolved and that I will have good news to report fairly soon. In any case, I have put my faith in the Lord and trust that He will resolve everything in just the right way.
Your friend in Jesus,
Bob L.
Question #16:
Hello again Dr. Luginbill,
In your much appreciated reply to my initial email to you, you addressed me by my first name, which is wonderful, but I still feel compelled to use your title and surname. Please don't read anything into that, it is only out of respect, in that I really do consider you my teacher right now. I am in the process of reading through all your material available on Ichthys.com. So many vaguely related ideas I have slowly been formulating over the past few years, like so many partially completed pieces of a jigsaw puzzle, are suddenly set before me in one entire clear and cohesive picture, each partially formed piece completed for me and placed in context. I listened to many other teachers try to assemble the puzzle, but there were always pieces missing or out of place. I have prayed for understanding, and have been answered with an almost overwhelming abundance in finding your website.
I have questions - but not as many as I would expect, due to your thorough exploration of your topics. I won't waste your time with questions on content until I have read all your material, since many of them may be answered in other sections as I read further. However, I do have just one question now, and it may also be answered somewhere in your Emails archive. If so, just a link to that place would be great. I am wondering if (and hoping) your website is a work in progress. Do you intend to complete the unfinished sections in your table of contents, and possibly even add more as inspiration moves you?
I stumbled upon your website by chance, and know nothing more about it than that which has been presented inside the site itself. I did eventually Google both you and the site, and other than finding an unrelated book about ancient Greece authored by yourself for sale on Amazon, a discussion about you on some local radio talk show, and a few ruffled feathers on a "Christian" Universalist website, as far as I can tell there is very little web presence of Ichthys.com. That in itself is astounding to me. Among all the vast array of Bible teaching in all its various forms available on the internet, with even the scripturally supported teaching for the most part pretty limited in understanding, your work truly stands out. I don't understand why you are not one of the most recognized Christian authors of the present time. Maybe that is yet to be. Maybe it is not in the will and plan of God for that to ever happen. Or possibly you are quite well known in loftier levels of Christian academia than I inhabit, in which case I apologize for my ignorance. Regardless, I count myself blessed for having found (or having been led to find) your website. It has already had a huge impact on my life, and, at the risk of repeating what I said in my previous email, thank you for choosing to use your gifts and devote your time for the benefit of God's other children.
I'm not much of a giver by nature, any spiritual gifts I have seem to be in other areas. It is therefore quite ironic to me personally to find that in one of the few instances I really would like to give, because it would go to a ministry which actually has enhanced my walk with the Lord Jesus Christ, you do not accept financial contributions. If that should change, or if there should ever be any circumstance I could be of service to you in any other way, please let me know. I am a resident of Los Angeles, born and raised here, and know many people and surrounding areas well. If you should ever have cause to travel to LA, I could be helpful for information or logistical support. I also have a good eye for typos, but have not come across any yet on your site.
I designed and ordered some shirts with your website address on them, using their stock artwork and my text and arrangement.
Hopefully you are ok with how your site is represented. I have worn these shirts since I got them a couple weeks ago, but will certainly stop if you have any problem with them or any changes to suggest.
Response #16:
Thank you so much for this inspiring and encouraging letter! I certainly appreciate all of your positive comments about this ministry, but what probably is the most uplifting is your report about your own spiritual progress resulting from attention to the truth. I always find it encouraging when believers like yourself "get it", because the "it" is clearly from the Spirit. What this ministry strives to provide is what every Bible teaching ministry ought to be providing, with merely non-essential matters of precise form and expression being different, not the underlying substance. The fact that solid teaching is not, however, widely available is a function of the times we live in. There is little genuine demand in Laodicea, hence, the Lord's provision need not be ubiquitous. Viewed in that light, the fact that this ministry (and no doubt others like it) are under the radar, so to speak, is not surprising – and also not a bad thing at all. In fact, it serves a scriptural purpose:
And the disciples came and said to Him, "Why do You speak to them in parables?" He answered and said to them, "Because it has been given to you to know the mysteries of the kingdom of heaven, but to them it has not been given. For whoever has, to him more will be given, and he will have abundance; but whoever does not have, even what he has will be taken away from him. Therefore I speak to them in parables, because seeing they do not see, and hearing they do not hear, nor do they understand. And in them the prophecy of Isaiah is fulfilled, which says: Hearing you will hear and shall not understand, and seeing you will see and not perceive; For the hearts of this people have grown dull. Their ears are hard of hearing, and their eyes they have closed, lest they should see with their eyes and hear with their ears, lest they should understand with their hearts and turn, so that I should heal them.’ But blessed are your eyes for they see, and your ears for they hear; for assuredly, I say to you that many prophets and righteous men desired to see what you see, and did not see it, and to hear what you hear, and did not hear it."
Matthew 13:10-17 NKJV
The past few years have been very "hectic", so to speak, so I have gotten somewhat behind on my plans to fill out the missing parts of some of the series. I'm still working away at BB 5, Pneumatology, and do hope to have it done sometime this year [now posted; see the link]. After Basics is finished, the Peter series will be resumed (that is the plan at the moment, at any rate), but that will be quite a long time out at present rates of production. Thanks for your interest! It is a motivational prod. Thanks also for your offer of help. Keeping this ministry on a grace basis has paid many spiritual dividends while avoiding many potential pitfalls, so I have no plans to change this approach. I would be pleased to receive any reports of typos or incorrect citations (as well as other grammatical infelicities, real or perceived). They are there to be found (trust me on this). Prayer is also gratefully accepted.
Most of all, thank you for witness of enthusiasm for the Word of God!
p.s., the T-shirts look great!
Yours in the dear Lord Jesus Christ for whose appearance we breathlessly wait,
Bob L.
Question #17:
Hello, I trust you are doing well, and spent this afternoon reading on your website. I was helped by reading Coming Tribulation Part 7: Preparing for Tribulation. I am a fairly slow reader and it took me 3 hours, I think!
I try to picture you as a youth and wonder how you attained your capacity for thinking and writing. It's amazing to me, and I trust you will not consider me a dunce. (At least, as one with average IQ, I do have the ability to recognize those with high IQ.)
I attached a doc that shows a few areas where you could correct typos, however, I have never felt that any of your typos are very significant or really need to be corrected. They do not hinder the sense or understanding of your words.
I still wish you would visit our church. As you might imagine, since our pastor does preach the Gospel (not about it, or otherwise diminishing it) we do not have many people. I think if we were Baptists we could have more. I only have a few in my Sunday School class, and they only come every other week, due to a family difficulty. I look back on better decades, and it certainly is easy to see that we are approaching the Day.
I hope you will have a good week in the Lord, and thank you for your hard, prodigious work for the Lord!
Response #17:
Thank you!
Apologies for the delay. I have been laboring under a very bad chest-cold and have gotten behind on most things. As usual, your email never made it to my main account, and it has been about a week since I checked my server account – found this message this morning.
These are very helpful! One change had already been made, but two of the typos had yet to be caught (and both are the sort of thing that I can read over dozens of times without catching . . . not getting any better at this either in spite of my many years at it).
I always appreciate your kind comments and surely also appreciate your help.
Thanks also for your latest invite. I will keep it in mind. Lots going on this summer, though. In addition to research and class prep for the job at U of L, I need to jump start Basics part 5 again [now posted; see the link].
Keeping running the good race! There is great reward once we break the tape.
In Jesus our dear Lord and Savior,
Bob L.
Question #18:
I am interested in knowing more about your bible studies.
Response #18:
Dear Friend,
Well, they are all available on line, everything I have finished to date, that is (at Ichthys.com; see the link). For general information please see the Frequently Asked Questions page, and do also feel free to write me back about anything (especially if I am missing the point of your question).
Yours in Jesus Christ our dear Lord and Savior,
Bob Luginbill
Question #19:
So the lessons are just online?
Response #19:
If you mean "are they available in print?", the answer is no. If you want printed materials, however, you are free to print them off yourself. For the reasons behind this please see the FAQ #1 "Books: Are these studies available in printed format? ".
Yours in our dear Lord Jesus,
Bob L.
Question #20:
Oh ok. I don't have a working printer. So will I be getting the lessons by email or do I do the lessons on the site?
Response #20:
Everything I have has been posted to the site. There are thousands of pages of material, so it should keep you busy a while. Here is another link from the FAQ that may help you get started:
Recommended Sequence: Which of these studies should I read first?
Do feel free to write back about any of this.
In Jesus our dear Lord and Savior,
Bob L.
Question #21:
Dear Sirs:
Can your archives be downloaded to Kindle with just my iPad? Your Theology, Part 1
is wonderful. Thank you so much for this work.
Response #21:
Good to make your acquaintance.
I am not Kindle user, so, frankly, I am not sure about that. I note that I have no problem opening any of formats on my iPad (that is true of HTML, PDF and RTF).
In terms of Kindle, I do know that Adobe has a free ebook reader available and that it will read the PDF files of these studies, and I have also been told that Kindle has the capability of doing the same. As to archives, if you mean the ZIP folders which contain multiple files, these can be downloaded to any conventional computing device, but I do not know about Kindle. Happily, all of these files are available individually and un-archived (i.e., unzipped) at Ichthys (in RTF Word-accessible as well as PDF).
It would be helpful to me to get an update from you so as to find out whether or not you were able to start reading these things.
Please do feel free to write back any time, and perhaps we will be able to find something that works for you in any case.
In Jesus our dear Lord and Savior,
Bob Luginbill
Question #22:
I have tried to print number 26 in the peter series a number of times. What comes up is the number 25 instead of number 26.
Thanks you for all of your help.
Blessings
Response #22:
Dear Friend,
Thank you for your email, and also thanks very much for spotting this problem. It has now been corrected (do let me know if you have any further issues on this score).
This is a personal ministry and is very much dependent upon readers like yourself reporting such problems when discovered.
Yours in Jesus Christ our dear Lord and Savior,
Bob Luginbill
Question #23:
Thank you for your reply, and thank you for your website. Have you set up a 501 c 3 in order for folks to give to help with the expenses of running your website?
Keep of the good work.
Merry Christmas
Blessings
Response #23:
You're very welcome – thanks for catching this glitch.
As to your question, I've managed to keep things simple by not taking donations. I do appreciate the thought – and am always grateful for prayer support!
Yours in Jesus Christ our dear Lord and Savior,
Bob L.
Question #24:
Dr. Luginbill,
Thank you for your service to our country, your time and the substantial reply. I will digest the links and continue to run the race.
1. Revisiting the topic of getting your materials out: I would like you to consider a self publishing online model for Kindle. It appears your materials are ready go be uploaded as is and Amazon.com has an easy interface that might be of a lot of value for many seekers. Here is the link for further consideration: https://kdp.amazon.com
I think this option would make them even more electronic friendly materials more easily accessed on smart phones, e-readers, tablets etc. No actual printing needed.
There are also other options i.e.
http://www.scribd.com/about
http://www.docstoc.com/publish-documents/
http://www.slideshare.net/about
2. Helping your materials come alive: I know that really, the best form for communicating a primer of these materials is a Video format and although your current vocation may not allow the bandwidth to create this, I think the world would greatly benefit from DVD style presentation of your materials. Please consider this. On the surface, it seems simple: Set up Camera, Press Record and Set you loose from beginning to end of your works. It would take a bit of time to complete, but could be done in a season and it would leave the world such an amazing legacy of your work forever captured with the 'vim and vigor' of the facilitator. I will turn 50 this year and although I enjoyed 11 years in the USAF from 1981 - 1992, I see the sands of time slipping by me and occasionally think of the term - legacy. If you would like any help with these efforts, please let me know what you would like to see and I'll see how I can help. I can provide 4-5 hours a week to help in any way necessary.
3. Larger Color Book Covers: I was also wondering if you had larger color images of the covers for each booklet that could be on the site. The images on the site are a bit small for proper cover art. I am sharing your materials with many people and most of them are looking at me like I have 3 heads regarding the Genesis Gap of 1.1 and 1.2. I am so amazed at how many people are not even searching for the 'secrets' in the bible. Especially the former Mormons who have been told that the Bible is full or errors which was just the wedge Satan needed to insert the Book Of Mormon.
So many lost and misguided souls.
Response #24:
Hello Friend,
Thanks for your (considerable) service as well!
I appreciate your encouragement. Actually, I have been considering the free Kindle and also the (cost of production only) Createspace options for electronic and hardcopy publishing respectively for some time now, and hope to reach a decision on this in the near future. In the past, I was reluctant to turn over any of my rights or any serious control of the process to a third party, but I know that such is not the case with the self-publishing options now available. If I decide to go this route, the book cover "problem" would be solved in the process.
On the video angle, this is something else I have been weighing and dabbling with peripherally for many years. In a perfect world, I would like to do something along the lines of Khan Academy, but the main obstacle is that the time involved to do a good job would be immense. Also, a good friend of mine, Pastor-Teacher Curtis Omo, is already doing this (see the link: Bible Academy – I highly recommend it). Personally, I currently barely have the time and energy to hold serve on my day job and the email ministry; I am already far behind where I would like to be in the production of new written studies. For more musings on this subject please see the link: "Regarding Ichthys". If I ever get to the point of being able to retire (at present staying afloat is problematic), I do plan to consider branching out into this area as well as into audio formats if possible – but all that seems a long way off at present.
Thanks so much for your generous offer of help and time – I truly appreciate it. What I need most is prayer support. After that, I always also appreciate anything "tech savvy" folks like yourself can do to help improve and promote the website, so let me express my gratitude for what you are already doing in sharing these materials about the Genesis Gap et al.
Feel free to write any time!
Your friend and brother in Jesus Christ our wonderful Shepherd, Lord and Savior.
Bob L.
Question #25:
Hello Bob,
I've been thinking and I realize it would be a good idea for you to put some of your material on video. Perhaps youtube or something of that sort. You have a lot of in-depth information on your site and I think this would be a great way for you to help people better understand your work. We are in a visual age and maybe some online lectures with charts, maps and power points will help unlock a lot more. Online sermons would give people a chance to enrich their Bible study by being able to stop, rewind and replay your series with your explanations. I go through your email responses often and I notice that you are asked the same or similar questions from time to time. Having video explanations will save you a lot of time and avoid redundancies, seeing that it is easier for people to remember what they see than what they read.
Just a thought, hope you take it into consideration.
Response #25:
Dear Friend,
Thanks for this email. Funny you should ask, but my good friend and fellow seminarian of many years ago, Pastor-teacher Curtis Omo, has recently put up a YouTube channel. I highly recommend this and think that you will find we are both "singing from the same hymnal". Here is the link:
Yours in Jesus Christ our dear Lord and Savior.
Bob L.
Question #26:
Dear Professor,
I have just finished the final installment of the Exodus 14 series, which was the last one left to read of all your studies on the website.
Your work is inspirational and life-changing, if only one's heart is open to the truth. Only by thoroughly going through all the content you produced over the years can one gain a glimpse of how much effort and diligent study it took.
I will now be re-reading everything and split my time between studies and email responses more equally, as so far I have not spent as much time on the latter.
In constant prayer for you and your ministry and in our Lord,
Response #26:
Thank you, Friend!
It's no small accomplishment to work one's way through all this material! I'm very impressed, not only with the effort but with the speed at which you accomplished it. I have no doubt that the Lord is moving you in this fashion in order to put you into service in a timely manner precisely because the time is so short. I look forward to the day soon to come when you will be engaging in your own ministry and helping others come to the gospel of Jesus Christ and grow in grace in Him through the truth once they do.
I have not only been much encouraged by your diligence and faithfulness; I and this ministry have benefitted greatly from all of your efforts as well.
Keep running the good race day by day as you have been doing. The heavenly rewards we are winning now are not to be compared to anything this life holds – and there is no limit to the spiritual accomplishments a dedicated Christian like yourself may achieve.
Your friend forever in Jesus Christ,
Bob L.
Question #27:
Hello my dear friend and brother Robert,
I do not have anything in particular to say but just wanted to let you know that your ministry blesses me so greatly every day, and how I pray that all those who truly seek and who truly yearn for the truth in this world of endless confusion might be led to your sound and ever God glorifying teachings!
Thanks again for all you do to the glory of God and for the spiritual well being of your fellow man,
Response #27:
Thank you!
Your encouragement is always wonderful and welcome. I also really appreciate your prayers.
I'm going to be out of town visiting family for the next week or so, so apologies in advance for any delay in answering emails.
Keep up your marvelous witness, my friend. Those who hold the standard high as you do are an example and an exhortation to us all to keep moving forward for Jesus Christ.
Yours in Jesus,
Bob L.
Question #28:
Dear Professor,
Thank you for another helpful response. I am always going through your answers with excitement.
I continue in my studies and having completed all your series on the website, reading email responses helps even more, as I can relate to the points you make more than it was the case.
Every day needs to be used to the full, and even if it is there is only so much that can be done, and there is so much to be done - Hebrew, Greek, Bible reading and study, but with your continuous support things are changing.
I pray for you and your ministry daily.
In our Lord,
Response #28:
Thank you Friend!
I appreciate you letting me know that this was safely received. I cannot tell you how encouraging it is and how motivating too to see someone so "gung ho" for the truth and so dedicated and consistent in living a good life for Jesus Christ. This is one way the Body contributes to its mutual growth, that is, by setting a good example. And that is the best way to lead too. All very good preparation for the day your own main ministry begins (and I know that you have already started to do so, and that too is a wonderful example of the right way to proceed).
In appreciation of your love for Christ and in gratitude for all your prayers.
Bob L.
Question #29:
I just wanted to reach out and say first how thankful I am to our wonderful Lord and Savior Christ Jesus for all He has done for us as well as for giving us your ministry. I have been reading from your website for the last few weeks and have coupled that with my bible studies and fellowship with the Lord and have grown by leaps and bounds. It was not until today that I decided to click on the about tab to discover that you're a professor at UofL. What a blessing in itself to see that you're teaching right here as I have been born raised and "born again" here myself. Really I just wanted to give a word of encouragement for what you're doing. So many people claim to be leading the Christian life who really don't understand what it really means and from want I can tell you appear to be living it and not just giving lip service to it. I've been studying so much in the last few weeks that I've accomplished little else as my only priority right now is a deeper walk with our dear Lord and your site has aided me in that quest tremendously so again thank you for all the hard work, study, and dedication you have given to your walk. It has truly been a blessing to many.
Response #29:
I'm very glad to make you acquaintance. It's always a pleasure to hear that these materials have been helpful in the spiritual growth and encouragement of my brothers and sisters in Christ.
I also very much appreciate your good words, enthusiasm, and especially the encouragement given here.
Please do feel free to write me anytime.
Yours in Jesus Christ our dear Lord and Savior,
Bob Luginbill
Question #30:
I want to send a potential idea about a series I would love for you to explore but before I do that, I want you to know that I really appreciate your site. It is very informative and is helping me now more about the awesome power of God and the ultimate sacrifice of our Lord and Savior Jesus Christ.
I would love for you to expound on a series on the power of the Word of God based on Isaiah 55:11 and how his Word is always truth and plays out exactly how he intended whether through fulfilled prophecies, its impact on our life and how it relates to salvation.
Please let me know if that is something you can do. If there is anything I can do to be of an assistance, please let me know.
Thanks and God Bless
Response #30:
Good to make your acquaintance, and thanks much for your kind words and for your suggestion. This passage has always been a favorite of mine, and I have quoted it and cited it many times in my work posted to Ichthys. It certainly will play an important role in the upcoming Bible Basics part 7: Bibliology: the Study of the Bible. That piece, while it lies some years in the future at the present rate of production, will have to be where I address this and related passages (I have my hands very much full as it is). In terms of what you say in this quote: "his Word is always truth and plays out exactly how he intended whether through fulfilled prophecies, its impact on our life and how it relates to salvation", I certainly heartily agree, and would ask you to have a look at the extensive treatment at the link of the closely related subject, the Plan of God, in BB 4B, section I, "God's Plan to Save You".
Yours in our dear Lord and Savior Jesus Christ,
Bob Luginbill
Question #31:
I have been trying to gain insight into this testing, but could not and was led to your paper. Thank you Dr. Luginbill. I am pursuing my doctorate and it has been a great challenge at work, school, and church. I pray for your continued success.
Response #31:
Dear Friend,
You are very welcome. There is a good deal of material at Ichthys designed to offer encouragement to believers who are undergoing "personal tribulation" and who are "sharing the sufferings of Christ" – so I'm not sure which paper you are referencing. The Peter series in particular is written with that goal in mind (see the link), and here are a few more links which deal with this subject:
Perseverance in the latter days of Laodicea
In Need of Guidance and Encouragement.
All about Ichthys: Mutual encouragement in the Lord
Mutual Encouragement in Christ.
Christian Trials and Testing
On the Firing Line: Encouragement in Christian Trials
Fighting the Good Fight of Faith.
Faith and Encouragement in the midst of Fiery Trials.
Encouragement in Christian Sufferings.
In need of encouragement.
Spiritual Resiliency.
Waiting on God.
Thank you so much for your prayers! They are greatly appreciated.
Best wishes for your success in getting that doctorate.
Yours in Jesus Christ our dear Lord and Savior,
Bob Luginbill
Question #32:
Bro. Bob,
I wanted to pass along a short email thanking you for your site: https://ichthys.com. I am a newly ordained FWB minister in WV and though I have two secular degrees (BA, MBA) I do not have any sort of religious studies degree. (I'm 38 years old with a wife and 2 kids, so most of my studies will be online-based. Physically stepping foot on a university campus simply isn't going to happen now.) So, Bible-based sites like yours are very valuable to me as I prepare sermons. I'm not sure what denomination you belong to ... but I can tell from your letters we are brothers in Christ. I appreciate all of your hard work and wanted to let you know that it blessed me.
Response #32:
Hello Friend,
Very good to make your acquaintance, and thanks much for your positive and encouraging words. As to your question, I'm not a member of any denomination. You can find out more and the background at the link: FAQ #4 "Affiliation: Is this ministry affiliated with any particular denomination?".
Best wishes for all your efforts in service to our Lord – feel free to write back any time.
In Jesus Christ our dear Savior,
Bob Luginbill
Question #33:
Robert,
God bless you for your ministry. I am reading your CT diligently every night. It is my bible study until I finish the whole series. I am reading about 7 churches. It will take me a couple of months to read it thoroughly including all references and verses and applying notes.
I pray for your ministry that God will bless it. I will have some questions that will arise particularly when I read the Church of Philadelphia and rapture but will wait until I read your work . It might answer my question.
Quick question about prayer. Have you done an extensive work on this subject? Particularly as it relates to theology and effective Christian walk. Is it included in your Peter Series which I will diligently study after satanic rebellion.
Let me know please. Also curious on what other work you are working on if any?
In Christ our Lord
Response #33:
Thanks as always for your words of encouragement – and also for you diligence in pursuing spiritual growth (1Thes.2:19).
At present, I am continuing to plug along with part 5 of the Bible Basics series, "Pneumatology". It has taken me a long time so far (over a year), but I hope to get it done before too much of 2014 expires [now posted; see the link].
Here are some links on prayer:
Prayer and our walk with Jesus
Prayer: the Persistence, Purpose and Power of.
The Lord's Prayer
Essentials of the Lord's Prayer (in CT 7)
The Will of God and Prayer
Praying for Wisdom
Corporate Prayer
Holding up "holy hands"
Length of prayers (and other issues)
Yours in Jesus Christ our dear Lord and Savior,
Bob L.
Question #34:
Dear Bob,
Holiday greetings from the Philippines!
Thank you very much for your ministry, which continues to encourage and enlighten me in my daily quest for spiritual growth through studying, believing and living the Word of God ( I eagerly await each new weekly posting without fail). I’m very grateful especially for your prayers and your posting my request for prayers in Ichthys. Your ministry and prayers had been most encouraging to me in putting perspective to both trials I underwent and blessings received for this year (the good fight of faith/ thanking the Lord always). May the Lord God Almighty continue to bless you and your ministry.
You are in my prayers, my dear brother.
Merry Christmas and a blessed 2014 to you and your loved ones!
Your brother in Christ,
Response #34:
Good to hear from you.
Thanks so much for your patience! I was out of town and away from my desk, visiting family for Christmas.
I appreciate your kind and encouraging words very much, my friend, and I too wish for you a blessed new year with great success in your efforts with and for the Lord Jesus.
You remain in my prayers day by day – and thanks so much for yours as well!
In our dear Savior Jesus Christ,
Bob L.
Question #35:
Dr. Luginbill,
I just wanted to write and say thank you for your wonderful teaching, it has changed my life. About six years ago I typed in the word Satanic in a google search and one of the first few sites to come up was yours. At first I wasn't sure about what I was reading, however for some reason I kept reading. I have to say you have given me a road map for my walk with The Lord. I read your emails every Saturday night and continue to press forward with all the different studies on your site. Since becoming a very frequent visitor of your site the Bible has come alive for me. Before it was like looking at a bunch of mixed up puzzle pieces and now it has begun to make a lot more sense. Not long before I found your site I told my friend that I would never be able to understand the book of Revelation, and now not only I'm beginning to understand, I also have been inspired to help other friends when I can. I know the Holy Spirit is doing much of the work, but I wanted you to know just how easy you have made it for me to learn. I've seen other emails regarding how well you explain things and I have to agree with them. I am keeping you in my prayers. I can only imagine that you have been a target of the evil one. I'm sure with what you have been doing for The Lord has got his attention. Take care and keep up the great work, it is truly inspiring.
Response #35:
Thanks for taking the time to write this very encouraging email! I truly appreciate it. I especially enjoyed the testimony – one which I can affirm from my experiences and the reports of others – that this is all about the Holy Spirit and our willingness to respond to Him and the truth He is ministering to us.
Thanks also so much for your prayers. I am very happy to have them indeed. I will also endeavor to "keep on keeping on" in the Spirit's power to the Lord Jesus' glory walking hand and hand with you and all who love the truth up that high road to glory.
In hopes of saluting you when you win your crowns on that great day.
In Jesus,
Bob L.
Question #36:
Thank you for putting your studies out for us to read. Gods been putting a message in my heart for a long time. The cross and repentance and a spirit lead life is lost in Christianity today. Replaced with men of the flesh serving in the flesh as they wish using the scriptures as they will, leading many astray. The preparation for the antichrist (his gospel ).
Life for me has been difficult, but the cross reaches across the brokenness of mind, spirit and body. I didn't think I would live this long. Jesus Christ is my every thing. I can't start or end a day with out him. Finally falling in love with Jesus and putting to death the man of flesh.
Thank you my brother for sharing your studies. I was greatly encouraged by what I read.
Your Brother in Christ.
p.s.: Do you have a mailing address I could send something to you to read. My phone is my internet access. Take to long to write out.
Response #36:
Very good to make your acquaintance – and thanks so much for all your good and encouraging words, and also for you encouraging testimony. Our Lord truly is good in every way, and sufficient for our every need.
As to mailing address, the best thing is to send to my university address:
Dr. Robert D. Luginbill
Dept. of Classical and Modern Languages
Humanities 332
University of Louisville
Louisville, KY 40292
Yours in our dear Lord Jesus Christ,
Bob Luginbill
Question #37:
Dear Brother Luginbill,
Having only discovered your website about 3 weeks ago, I want to tell you how much I am enjoying, and how thankful I am to the Lord for the in-depth studies of His Word that He has made so readily available through your faithful obedience and generosity.
I am studying through the Satanic Rebellion series and am presently working through Part 4. I began with this series as you suggest before delving into your study on The Coming Tribulation, a topic that has occupied much of my thoughts, study and prayers for many years. I am so glad that I followed your advice here, as the insights gained so far have greatly expanded and enriched my understanding of the Last Days prophecies by placing them within the greater context of the Satanic Rebellion and God's gracious and methodical response to it.
I anticipate working through all the studies you have posted and will post in the future.
By the way, I discovered your site by googling a question I had that you answered: What ever happened to Joseph the stepfather of Jesus?
Thank you again for your obedient ministry.
Yours in Christ,
Response #37:
It's very good make your acquaintance.
Thanks for your words of encouragement and for the background on finding and using Ichthys – I certainly appreciate your enthusiasm for the Word of God!
Feel free to write me back with questions any time.
Your fellow member in the Body of Christ,
Bob Luginbill
Question #38:
I found your web site by accident. You are a treasure.
I was in the Corps in 1977, and was introduced to Col. Thieme by a taper.
I appreciate your web site.
Response #38:
Good to make your acquaintance.
As you probably know from the website, I have a similar testimony.
Glad you are enjoying Ichthys!
Please feel free to write back any time.
In Jesus Christ our dear Lord and Savior,
Bob Luginbill
Question #39:
Hi Bob. I am texting from my phone. I am looking at your site and would appreciate any recommended studies that would benefit Spirituality, that may encourage an awakening in those we meet. I understand this is our Fathers work, and believe if I reach for more resources he will use them in a unique way through me.
Thanks,
Response #39:
I like to think that all of God's truth is "profitable for doctrine, for reproof, for correction, for instruction in righteousness: that the man of God may be perfect, throughly furnished unto all good works" (2Tim.3:16-17 KJV).
That said, if you are referring to our general walk with Jesus, while, again, to draw closer to Him requires attention to all aspects of the truth, I do have some things which deal specifically with various aspects this topic (BB 6A, "Peripateology", will eventually cover the area of Christian application):
Read Your Bible
Imitating Christ
Ichthys and the Contemporary Christian Experience
Please do email back in case you would like me to be more specific about any of this.
Your fellow worker in the vineyard of the Church of Jesus Christ,
Bob L.