In this lesson we will discuss the four commands in 1 Peter 2:17: Honor all men; Love the brotherhood; Fear God; Honor the king. The hearer should be able to quote and explain the verse citing a supporting scripture for each point.
We note that Paul's statement that Christ sent him not to baptize, didn't mean that Paul never baptized anyone. If it was the case that Paul wasn't supposed to baptize anyone, then he wouldn't have baptized Crispus and Gaius who he directly states in the context that he did indeed baptize. So the passage couldn't mean that Christ didn't send Paul to baptize at all.
Verse 26 of Romans 11 is the conclusion to the allegory. Paul says, "And SO all Israel shall be saved." Paul doesn't say, "all Israel shall be saved," but "SO all Israel shall be saved." The word "so" is an adverb of manner. It means in such a way, or in such a manner, all Israel shall be saved. The idea is that they will be saved in the same manner in which they are grafted back into the Olive Tree, through belief that Jesus is the Messiah.
What is the gospel? It is 1) the Good News, 2) the Death, Burial, and Resurrection of Jesus, 3) the Power of God to Salvation. Each hearer will be able to answer the question, “What is the gospel?” I want to communicate that the gospel is God’s plan for salvation through Jesus Christ.
When God brought the children of Israel out of bondage, He instructed Moses to tell them this: “Now therefore, if you will indeed obey My voice and keep My […]
At the end of August, buried among the headlines of riots and viruses, a three-thousand person survey found that 52% of those that responded did not believe that Jesus was […]
In this lesson we will study the song “A Beautiful Life.” This song emphasizes that the true beauty of the Christian is in 1) serving others 2) pure living, 3) recognizing our mortality. Each hearer should understand that life is fleeting and we need to make the most of every day to do good to others.
Should we assemble on the Sabbath to worship? Some religious folks do, but the Bible never commands Christians to do this.
What is sin? Sin is 1) lawlessness, 2) violation of conscience, 3) leaving undone what we should do. Each hearer should be able to state what sin is. This lesson seeks to answer a top religious question with Bible teaching.
In this lesson we will examine three practical ways in which we can make it easy to forbear and forgive one another. The objective of this lesson is to seek to practice forbearance and forgiveness of one another in our lives.
We must keep the unity of the Spirit by 1) Speaking the Same Things 2) Not have division, 3) Have the same Judgment. Each listener should be able to explain how to have unity. Each Christian should be committed to maintaining unity by doing these things.
“There’s no such thing as bad publicity” is a saying attributed to P.T. Barnum and his famous circus. He had a lot of critics, but people kept coming to […]
Is love worth the risk? Rejecting the possibility of having love in our life is just another “rubber room,” a place where we will be protected from emotional pain, but at the loss of real relationships, which everyone actually desires most in this world. When we refuse to love others, we also fall into a profound self-absorption, a selfishness from which we will never recover. But to learn to love, we must risk suffering, and to risk suffering, we need a world that is not safe, sanitized, and preventative of all harm.
Last week we looked at the question, “Why didn’t God make the world in such a way so as to give people freedom but without any bad consequences?” The answer […]
God has spoken in a way we can understand because 1) God knows how to communicate, 2) The Bible is written in a language we can understand, and 3) Jesus gives us his example so that we may follow. Each person should know that he/she can understand and obey the Bible.
“Why is there so much suffering in the world?” the atheist asks. The believer responds, “Because God made people free to choose between right and wrong, and all suffering is […]
What is reality? God is real. People are real. Relationships are real. Each listener will know the biblical answer to the question, “What is Reality?” We will focus our thoughts on what is real as opposed to what is not.
“Be sober, be vigilant; because your adversary the devil walks about like a roaring lion, seeking whom he may devour” (1 Peter 5:8). The word “Satan” means “adversary.” The word […]
The Lord hears when we pray and provides 1) Relief, 2) Relationship, 3) Righteousness, and 4) Refuge. Each Christian should learn to trust in the Lord and turn to him to prayer in all circumstances of life. The aim of this lesson is to help each Christian recognize the power of prayer through the Psalms.
Revelation 22 pictures paradise reclaimed and offers a path to it. In this chapter we find 1) A Reward for the Faithful 2) A Watch for the Living, 3) A Warning for the Wicked. The hearer should understand that God is working to restore us to His original plan and we must obey him to get there.