Carlos Malbrew Presents Brief Introduction to the Bread from Heaven...

When a Samaritan woman came to draw water, Jesus said to her, “Will you give me a drink?” (His disciples had gone into the town to buy food.) 

The Samaritan woman said to him, “You are a Jew, and I am a Samaritan woman. How can you ask me for a drink?” (For Jews do not associate with Samaritans.) 

Jesus answered her, “If you knew the gift of God and who it is that asks you for a drink, you would have asked him, and he would have given you living water.” 

“Sir,” the woman said, “you have nothing to draw with, and the well is deep. Where can you get this living water? Are you greater than our father Jacob, who gave us the well and drank from it himself, as did also his sons and his livestock?” 

Jesus answered, “Everyone who drinks this water will be thirsty again, but whoever drinks the water I give them will never thirst. Indeed the water I give them will become in them a spring of water welling up to eternal life.”

 The woman said to him, “Sir, give me this water so that I won’t get thirsty and have to keep coming here to draw water.” 

He told her, “Go call your husband and come back.” 

“I have no husband,” she replied. 

Jesus said to her, “You are right when you say you have no husband. The fact is, you have had five husbands, and the man you now have is not your husband. What you have just said is quite true.” 

“Sir, the woman said, “I can see that you are a prophet. Our ancestors worshiped on this mountain, but you Jews claim that the place where we must worship is in Jerusalem.”

“Woman,” Jesus replied, “believe me, a time is coming when you will worship the Father neither on this mountain nor in Jerusalem. You Samaritans worship what you do not know; we worship what we know, for salvation is from the Jews. 

Yet a time is coming and has now come when the true worshipers will worship the Father in spirit and in truth, for they are the kind of worshipers the Father seeks. God is Spirit, and his worshipers must worship in the Spirit and in truth.” The woman said, “I know that Messiah” (called Christ) is coming. When he comes, he will explain everything to us.” Then Jesus declared, “I, the one speaking to you—I am he.” (John 4:7–26).

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Bread from Heaven:

A Brief Introduction to Jesus

By Carlos Malbrew

As I read this short book, I thought how easily it could be used to share with others...as an ebook, taking your reader with you, or as a printed book... It is the right size, for one. And it takes readers step-by-step from one scripture to another, included within the book, which is important to me, with narrative by the author in between, but which could also be used by the individual who wants to share Jesus with others.

It begins with the story with the woman at the well. But she wasn't just any woman, she was a Samaritan. For me, this was the beginning of seeing God's love for the world. Jesus purposely chose to speak to someone who was not a Jew, the chosen people. Rather to someone different, separate, and even despised and ignored by the Jews...

The author calls this first chapter The Revolution, with an important statement that, even today, we fail to recognize.

Due to Jesus’ emergence, God’s chosen people were no longer to be defined by earthly genealogy. Now, anyone from any nation or creed who accepted Jesus was to be considered a child of God. And the 613 laws of the Jewish Nation, Israel, were being simplified into two laws. And according to Jesus, those two laws are the basis of God’s entire will... Going on to say: 

The need to worship God “in spirit and in truth” had revolutionized what it meant to be a child of Abraham. Then Jesus took things even further, incensing them as he proclaimed the impossible…

It's funny, having grown up in a Christian environment, I never thought to use the word "revolution" in relation to what God had sent Jesus to do... Yet, that's exactly what started happening as people who came to know Jesus started taking sides... As we know, the man Jesus lost his life during that revolution...

Next, Malbrew notes that it was hard to believe...but also saying at other times, that many did not want to believe... At this time he included scripture about the Pharisees, and then proceeds to postulate that it was because of human wisdom that they could not recognize who He was, even as they looked in his eyes... For me, this was a point that many are now making in one way or another... It is we who do not want to see what's available to us. 

Jesus had come to give them the very sign that they had been seeking, but Malbrew continues to point out that everybody would soon ask Jesus..."for a sign..." How frustrating! He was performing miracles, healing people... 

Intentionally the message of Christ can only be understood through a childlike humility. This is why for many it's easy to come to him when in tears, when out of money, when someone has left us—at those times some of us can suddenly come to him with genuine vulnerability.

It has always seemed easy for me to understand what Malbrew spotlights... Why oh why can humans not discard our pride and recognize that we are the ones that need Him...not the other way around... When God was willing to have His Son come and then to follow by placing His Holy Spirit within us... and yet, it was that they rejected Him...and many still are...

As the author writes, he stops and ask us to look at the world of 2017 and see where we are...

Moving on to also consider the materialistic world that we have become...the desire for money--to which I would add power... The author does admit that it is not impossible to have money and still have God's love within us... The key thing for me has always been whether money was placed as the top priority in your life... As scripture is continued, more information is provided...

This is a scripture-based study with commentary and selections of the Bible based upon the reading by Carlos Malbrew. It is well done and though there may be points of different opinions for some of the commentary, it is overall a presentation that points readers into issues of importance in relation to the Son of God. The book is brief enough that, in my opinion, could easily be shared and discussed even over a cup of coffee...There may be somebody you know that would like to learn more... Do check this out as a refresher if you haven't been considering where Jesus fits in your life today...


GABixlerReviews

Carlos Malbrew was born on December 12, 1982, in Lake Charles, Louisiana. He grew up in the state's capital city, Baton Rouge. He graduated from Baton Rouge Magnet High School and attended Xavier University of New Orleans the following fall. There, in 2005, he obtained his Bachelor of Arts in English. After Hurricane Katrina hit the Crescent City, Carlos left New Orleans and attended The New York Conservatory for Dramatic Arts, graduating in 2007. Carlos returned to his hometown Baton Rouge, Louisiana and obtained his Master's in Public Administration from Louisiana State University in 2012. His publishing company, C.R.M. International, launched in 2015 and includes his hit franchise, 'The DANGER! Kids'. The author promotes literacy by speaking to students and and promotes the practical application of biblical scripture beginning with "King Solomon's Conclusion" December 1, 2016.