Bible Study Lesson for Aug. 15, 2007
Hey guys ... I'm doing this primarily for my bible study students that read the B.L.O.G. That being said, I haven't forgotten about you guys ... I'm working on a blizzle right now called 'The Realization'.
Lord willin', this is going to be an every week thing, and I'm truly making adjustments in my life to clear my mind and to be better than I've ever been.
Yesterday (Thursday, August 16), I started a 40-day period where I'm not going to eat meat. Inspired by famous vegans, a good friend of mine, and a desire to want to adjust my focus, I decided to see how long I could maintain such a diet.
I'm also reading my bible more, and in light of a recent trip I made, realized the things that I need to do to become better, which the upcoming blog will describe.
So, pray for me as I pray for you. I know the blogs have been sporadic, but I thank those of you who take the time every once in a while to stop by the blizzle.
I hope you all are prospering (or more importantly, are content) as well. Take care.
-------------------------
- I’m Hungry -
Last week’s lesson: Phases – A lesson dealing with growing up in Christ. Different sets of verses were designated for middle school students, high school students and college students with the pretense of adding more to your spiritual knowledge base as you get older.
This week’s precursor: The inspiration for the Aug. 16 lesson came from a recent road trip from the Upstate of South Carolina. I was riding home, and was listening to a Jazzy Jeff (Return of the Magnificent) CD when I became hungry … both physically and spiritually. To quench the latter, I put in a CD of my pastor’s sermon on Jonah, and to fill my belly, I stopped in a gas station. Upon leaving the gas station, about half a mile down the road I picked up a flat tire, and headed back to the station.
Mind you, it was HOT. I could barely put my hands on the ground to get a closer look at things, and long story short, I had to change the tire.
That inspired me to ask the question of “Why Am I Here?”, a question that Christians tend to ask from time to time because of adversity, or in my case, situations where he/she is forced to backtrack.
Not soon after I ask this question, a man came up to me with a bottle of water that he’d just purchased, and gave it to me.
I didn’t even figure out the significance of the water until the day of the actual lesson, where I came across a study bible and read the seventh chapter of John, which talks about ‘living water’, and from there, decided to share my experience(s) with the class.
---------------------- Scripture Says ----------------------
The lesson will deal with three primary dynamics – adversity as a Christian, self-evaluation, and being rewarded (or not) for doing right.
First, allow me to present John 6:27-35.
27Do not work for food that spoils, but for food that endures to eternal life, which the Son of Man will give you. On him God the Father has placed his seal of approval." 28Then they asked him, "What must we do to do the works God requires?" 29Jesus answered, "The work of God is this: to believe in the one he has sent." 30So they asked him, "What miraculous sign then will you give that we may see it and believe you? What will you do? 31Our forefathers ate the manna in the desert; as it is written: 'He gave them bread from heaven to eat.’” 32Jesus said to them, "I tell you the truth, it is not Moses who has given you the bread from heaven, but it is my Father who gives you the true bread from heaven. 33For the bread of God is he who comes down from heaven and gives life to the world." 34"Sir," they said, "from now on give us this bread." 35Then Jesus declared, "I am the bread of life. He who comes to me will never go hungry, and he who believes in me will never be thirsty.
This passage talks primarily about not worrying so much about physical hunger as we should about spiritual hunger. Matthew 6:25 offers a similar concept:
25"Therefore I tell you, do not worry about your life, what you will eat or drink; or about your body, what you will wear. Is not life more important than food, and the body more important than clothes?
When I first looked back at the man giving me the water, my mind immediately went to the fact that humans can go for weeks without eating, but will die after 3-4 days without water. That was before I looked at John 7:37-39:
37On the last and greatest day of the Feast, Jesus stood and said in a loud voice, "If anyone is thirsty, let him come to me and drink. 38Whoever believes in me, as the Scripture has said, streams of living water will flow from within him." 39By this he meant the Spirit, whom those who believed in him were later to receive. Up to that time the Spirit had not been given, since Jesus had not yet been glorified.
That’s when I realized that my asking “Why Am I Here?” at the gas station was a self-effacing question, meaning I didn’t want an answer for myself so much as I wanted to understand what God’s purpose was for me at that time.
The man who gave me the water represented my thirst for the knowledge of God being satisfied. Matthew 6:33 also promises prosperity for those who seek God first:
33But seek first his kingdom and his righteousness, and all these things will be given to you as well.
It’s not just enough to hear God’s word, though, but to do it as well. See James 1:21-24:
21Therefore, get rid of all moral filth and the evil that is so prevalent and humbly accept the word planted in you, which can save you. 22Do not merely listen to the word, and so deceive yourselves. Do what it says. 23Anyone who listens to the word but does not do what it says is like a man who looks at his face in a mirror 24and, after looking at himself, goes away and immediately forgets what he looks like.
The lesson will commence with verses dealing with each of the ‘primary dynamics’, which seems funny now considering that they weren’t addressed until the end. Oh well.
Adversity as a Christian - II Timothy 2:3-4, 11-12
3Endure hardship with us like a good soldier of Christ Jesus. 4No one serving as a soldier gets involved in civilian affairs—he wants to please his commanding officer. 11Here is a trustworthy saying: If we died with him, we will also live with him; 12if we endure, we will also reign with him. If we disown him, he will also disown us.
Contrary to popular opinion, being a Christian isn’t easy. At the same time, we know that while things might not always go as we’d like them to, through Christ Jesus, we are guaranteed a ‘happy ending’, or spending the rest of eternity with Him.
Self-Evaluation (Why Am I Here?) - Deuteronomy 4:29
29 But if from there you seek the LORD your God, you will find him if you look for him with all your heart and with all your soul.
Again, when we face situations, we should focus on God more than ever to seek the answers we want to know.
Reward (or not) for doing right - Jonah 2:8-10
8 "Those who cling to worthless idols forfeit the grace that could be theirs. 9 But I, with a song of thanksgiving, will sacrifice to you. What I have vowed I will make good. Salvation comes from the LORD." 10 And the LORD commanded the fish, and it vomited Jonah onto dry land.
In Jonah 2, Jonah is in the belly of a fish. Instead of just begging to get out of the fish (you know when you get in trouble, you ask God to get you out of –the situation-; truth is, God has a bigger plan and a broader vision for your life), Jonah said that he would praise God, and do what God told him to do (whether he got out of the fish or not). God recognized Jonah’s sincerity, and as a result, Jonah was forgiven.
-May God continue to bless us all.-
Lord willin', this is going to be an every week thing, and I'm truly making adjustments in my life to clear my mind and to be better than I've ever been.
Yesterday (Thursday, August 16), I started a 40-day period where I'm not going to eat meat. Inspired by famous vegans, a good friend of mine, and a desire to want to adjust my focus, I decided to see how long I could maintain such a diet.
I'm also reading my bible more, and in light of a recent trip I made, realized the things that I need to do to become better, which the upcoming blog will describe.
So, pray for me as I pray for you. I know the blogs have been sporadic, but I thank those of you who take the time every once in a while to stop by the blizzle.
I hope you all are prospering (or more importantly, are content) as well. Take care.
-------------------------
- I’m Hungry -
Last week’s lesson: Phases – A lesson dealing with growing up in Christ. Different sets of verses were designated for middle school students, high school students and college students with the pretense of adding more to your spiritual knowledge base as you get older.
This week’s precursor: The inspiration for the Aug. 16 lesson came from a recent road trip from the Upstate of South Carolina. I was riding home, and was listening to a Jazzy Jeff (Return of the Magnificent) CD when I became hungry … both physically and spiritually. To quench the latter, I put in a CD of my pastor’s sermon on Jonah, and to fill my belly, I stopped in a gas station. Upon leaving the gas station, about half a mile down the road I picked up a flat tire, and headed back to the station.
Mind you, it was HOT. I could barely put my hands on the ground to get a closer look at things, and long story short, I had to change the tire.
That inspired me to ask the question of “Why Am I Here?”, a question that Christians tend to ask from time to time because of adversity, or in my case, situations where he/she is forced to backtrack.
Not soon after I ask this question, a man came up to me with a bottle of water that he’d just purchased, and gave it to me.
I didn’t even figure out the significance of the water until the day of the actual lesson, where I came across a study bible and read the seventh chapter of John, which talks about ‘living water’, and from there, decided to share my experience(s) with the class.
---------------------- Scripture Says ----------------------
The lesson will deal with three primary dynamics – adversity as a Christian, self-evaluation, and being rewarded (or not) for doing right.
First, allow me to present John 6:27-35.
27Do not work for food that spoils, but for food that endures to eternal life, which the Son of Man will give you. On him God the Father has placed his seal of approval." 28Then they asked him, "What must we do to do the works God requires?" 29Jesus answered, "The work of God is this: to believe in the one he has sent." 30So they asked him, "What miraculous sign then will you give that we may see it and believe you? What will you do? 31Our forefathers ate the manna in the desert; as it is written: 'He gave them bread from heaven to eat.’” 32Jesus said to them, "I tell you the truth, it is not Moses who has given you the bread from heaven, but it is my Father who gives you the true bread from heaven. 33For the bread of God is he who comes down from heaven and gives life to the world." 34"Sir," they said, "from now on give us this bread." 35Then Jesus declared, "I am the bread of life. He who comes to me will never go hungry, and he who believes in me will never be thirsty.
This passage talks primarily about not worrying so much about physical hunger as we should about spiritual hunger. Matthew 6:25 offers a similar concept:
25"Therefore I tell you, do not worry about your life, what you will eat or drink; or about your body, what you will wear. Is not life more important than food, and the body more important than clothes?
When I first looked back at the man giving me the water, my mind immediately went to the fact that humans can go for weeks without eating, but will die after 3-4 days without water. That was before I looked at John 7:37-39:
37On the last and greatest day of the Feast, Jesus stood and said in a loud voice, "If anyone is thirsty, let him come to me and drink. 38Whoever believes in me, as the Scripture has said, streams of living water will flow from within him." 39By this he meant the Spirit, whom those who believed in him were later to receive. Up to that time the Spirit had not been given, since Jesus had not yet been glorified.
That’s when I realized that my asking “Why Am I Here?” at the gas station was a self-effacing question, meaning I didn’t want an answer for myself so much as I wanted to understand what God’s purpose was for me at that time.
The man who gave me the water represented my thirst for the knowledge of God being satisfied. Matthew 6:33 also promises prosperity for those who seek God first:
33But seek first his kingdom and his righteousness, and all these things will be given to you as well.
It’s not just enough to hear God’s word, though, but to do it as well. See James 1:21-24:
21Therefore, get rid of all moral filth and the evil that is so prevalent and humbly accept the word planted in you, which can save you. 22Do not merely listen to the word, and so deceive yourselves. Do what it says. 23Anyone who listens to the word but does not do what it says is like a man who looks at his face in a mirror 24and, after looking at himself, goes away and immediately forgets what he looks like.
The lesson will commence with verses dealing with each of the ‘primary dynamics’, which seems funny now considering that they weren’t addressed until the end. Oh well.
Adversity as a Christian - II Timothy 2:3-4, 11-12
3Endure hardship with us like a good soldier of Christ Jesus. 4No one serving as a soldier gets involved in civilian affairs—he wants to please his commanding officer. 11Here is a trustworthy saying: If we died with him, we will also live with him; 12if we endure, we will also reign with him. If we disown him, he will also disown us.
Contrary to popular opinion, being a Christian isn’t easy. At the same time, we know that while things might not always go as we’d like them to, through Christ Jesus, we are guaranteed a ‘happy ending’, or spending the rest of eternity with Him.
Self-Evaluation (Why Am I Here?) - Deuteronomy 4:29
29 But if from there you seek the LORD your God, you will find him if you look for him with all your heart and with all your soul.
Again, when we face situations, we should focus on God more than ever to seek the answers we want to know.
Reward (or not) for doing right - Jonah 2:8-10
8 "Those who cling to worthless idols forfeit the grace that could be theirs. 9 But I, with a song of thanksgiving, will sacrifice to you. What I have vowed I will make good. Salvation comes from the LORD." 10 And the LORD commanded the fish, and it vomited Jonah onto dry land.
In Jonah 2, Jonah is in the belly of a fish. Instead of just begging to get out of the fish (you know when you get in trouble, you ask God to get you out of –the situation-; truth is, God has a bigger plan and a broader vision for your life), Jonah said that he would praise God, and do what God told him to do (whether he got out of the fish or not). God recognized Jonah’s sincerity, and as a result, Jonah was forgiven.
-May God continue to bless us all.-
posted by The Good Doctor at 12:30 AM
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