Archive for the ‘Bible Study’ Category

Battle Focus on Jesus

Posted: July 23, 2014 in Acceptance, Battle Focus, Bible Study, Encourgement, Inspiration, Personal Growth, Proverbs, Spiritual Training, trust in the Lord with all your heart, Uncategorized, Under Gods Command
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Under Gods Command:

Mathew 6:33 But seek first his kingdom and his righteousness, and all these things will be given to you as well.

 To “seek first his kingdom and his righteousness” means to turn to God first for help, to fill your thoughts with his desires, to take his character for your pattern, and to serve and obey him in everything.

Lets Bring it Home: What is really important to you? People, objects, goals, and other desires all compete for priority. Any of these can quickly become most important to you if you don’t actively choose to give God first place in every area of your life.

 Matthew 14:29 “Come,” he said. Then Peter got down out of the boat, walked on the water and came toward Jesus. But when he saw the wind, he was afraid and, beginning to sink, cried out, “Lord, save me!

Peter started to sink because he took his eyes off Jesus and focused on the high waves around him. His faith wavered when he released what he was doing.

Lets Bring it Home: We may not walk on water, but we do walk through tough situations. If we focus on the waves of difficult circumstances around us without looking to Jesus for help, we too may despair and sink. To maintain your faith when situations are difficult, keep your eyes on Jesus power rather than on your inadequacies.

 

Proverbs 23:35 Wisdom for the Soul

Posted: July 23, 2014 in Acceptance, Bible Study, Encourgement, Inspiration, Personal Growth, Proverbs 23, Spiritual Training, trust in the Lord with all your heart, Uncategorized, Under Gods Command
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Under Gods Command

Proverbs 23:35 “They hit me,” you will say, “but I’m not hurt! They beat me, but I don’t fell it! When will I wake up so I can find another drink?

The drunkard is insane! He drinks until he is senseless and cannot feel the pain he causes himself and others. Then he must sleep for hours or days to get rid of his miserable hangover. But as soon as he is awake, he goes straight for the bottle again. This proverb describes the shameful attitude and action of the drunkard, rather than his literal words.

The Preacher has already taught you, “Wine is a mocker, strong drink is raging: and whosoever is deceived thereby is not wise” (Pr 20:1). The proverb before you illustrates the mocking and raging consequences of drunkenness – the man is violently hurt by strong drink and foolishly mocked by wine, but he intends to drink even more, soon.

Solomon also listed the troubles of the drunkard, “Who hath woe? who hath sorrow? who hath contentions? who hath babbling? who hath wounds without cause? who hath redness of eyes?” (Pr 23:29). In spite of such constant and miserable consequences, the drunkard returns again to much wine (Pr 23:30). Give me another one, he shouts obnoxiously!

The dog eats his own vomit, for his nature demands it (Pr 26:11). Pigs return to wallowing in the mud, for their nature demands it (II Pet 2:22). But the drunkard has no such natural instinct for self-destruction other than the deceitfulness of sin and the addicting properties of alcohol. “Whosoever is deceived thereby is not wise!” Stay away!

This proverb describes the bodily troubles often experienced by drunkards. They engage in brawls for no reason at all; they provoke fights they would otherwise avoid. They fall down steps and off chairs; they have auto accidents. But they feel little, for they are senseless to physical, mental, or spiritual perception. They are lost in their drunkenness!

And though the consequences of drunkenness are horrible, the drunkard continues to drink himself drunk. He can no longer deliver himself, though he has a lie in his right hand. He builds a horrible habit, gives place to the devil, and becomes a slave to alcohol. What could have been an asset is now a noose slowly choking him to death (Pr: 31:6-7).

Is the drunkard more stupid than other sinners? Hardly! All sins have short pleasure, great and long-lasting pain, and eternal judgment. Why do men love and continue in any sin? Is there hope for the drunkard? Certainly! All sinners may have great hope in the Lord Jesus Christ. Paul wrote, “O wretched man that I am! who shall deliver me from the body of this death? I thank God through Jesus Christ our Lord” (Rom 7:24-25).

Spiritual Training 23 July 2014

Posted: July 23, 2014 in 1 Corinthians, Acceptance, Bible Study, Encourgement, Inspiration, Personal Growth, Spiritual Training, trust in the Lord with all your heart, Uncategorized, Under Gods Command
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Under Gods Command

1 Corinthians 8:4-9 So then, about eating food sacrificed to idols: We know that an idol is nothing at all in the world and that there is no God but one. For even if there are so-called gods, whether in heaven or on earth (as indeed there are many “gods” and many “lords”), yet for us there is but one Lord, Jesus Christ, through whom all things came and through whom we live.

     But not everyone knows this. Some people are still so accustomed to idols that when they eat such food they think of it as having been sacrificed to an idol, and since their conscience is weak, it is defiled, But food does not bring us near to God; we are no worse if we do not eat, and no better if we do. 

Paul addressed these words to believers who weren’t bothered by eating meat that had been sacrificed to idols. Although idols were phony, and the pagan ritual of sacrificing to them was meaningless, eating such meat offended Christians with more sensitive consciences. Paul said, therefore, that if a weaker or less mature believer misunderstood their actions they should, out of consideration, avoid eating meat offered to idols.

8:10-13For if anyone with a weak conscience sees you who have this knowledge eating in an idol’s temple, won’t he be emboldened to eat what has been sacrificed to idols? So this weak brother, for whom Christ died, is destroyed by your knowledge. When you sin against your bothers in this way and wound their weak conscience, you sin against Christ. Therefore, if what I eat causes my brother to fall into sin, I will never eat meat again, so that I will not cause him to fall. 

Christian freedom does not mean that anything goes. It means that our salvation is not determined by good deeds or legalistic rules, but by the free gift of God (Ephesians 2:8,9). Christian freedom, then, is inseparably tied to Christian responsibility. New believers are often very sensitive to what is right or wrong, what they should or shouldn’t do. Some actions may be perfectly all right for us to do, but many harm a Christian brother or sister who is still young in the faith and learning what the Christian life is all about.

Lets Bring it Home: We must be careful not to offend a sensitive or younger Christian or, by our example, to cause him or her to sin. When we love others, our freedom should be less important to us than strengthening the faith of a brother or sister in Christ.

Spiritual Training 10 July 2014

Posted: July 10, 2014 in 1 Corinthians, Acceptance, Bible Study, Encourgement, Inspiration, Personal Growth, Spiritual Training, trust in the Lord with all your heart, Uncategorized, Under Gods Command
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Under Gods Command

1 Corinthians 8:1-3 Now about food sacrificed to idols; We know that we all possess knowledge. Knowledge puffs up, but love builds up. The man who thinks he knows something does not yet know as he ought to know. But the man who loves God is known by God.

Love is more important than knowledge. Knowledge can make us look good and feel important, but we can all too easily develop an arrogant, know-it-all attitude. Many people with strong opinions are unwilling to listen to and learn from God and others.

1 John 4:7-8 Dear friends, let us love one another, for love comes from God. Everyone who loves has been born of God and knows God. Whoever does not love does not know God, because God is love.

John says, “God is love,” not “Love is God,” Our world, with its shallow and selfish view of love, has turned these words around and contaminated our understanding of love. The world thinks that love is what makes a person feel good and that it is all right to sacrifice moral principles and others rights in order to obtain such “love.” But that isn’t real love; it is the exact opposite-selfishness. And God is not that kind of “love.”

Lets Bring it Home: We can obtain God’s knowledge only by loving him (James 3:17-18). And we can know and be known by God only when we model him by showing love. Real love is like God, who is holy, just and perfect. If we truly know God, we will love as he does

Proverbs 10:18 He who conceals his hatred has lying lips, and whoever spreads slander is a fool.

Posted: July 10, 2014 in Acceptance, Bible Study, Encourgement, Inspiration, Personal Growth, Proverbs 10, Spiritual Training, trust in the Lord with all your heart, Uncategorized, Under Gods Command
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By hating another person you may become a liar or a fool. If you try to conceal your hatred, you end up lying. If you slander the other person and are proven wrong, you are a fool. The only way out is to admit your hateful feelings to God. Ask him to change your heart, to help you love instead of hate.

Here are two easy ways to sin with your speech. You can be a hypocrite and use polite words to deceive people and hide the bitterness and envy in your heart. Or you can spread false and malicious rumors about a person to others. These two sins are in great supply today. Transparent honesty and integrity – clearly visible and known by all – are rare.

Reader, do you see what the wise man Solomon wrote next? He wrote, “When words are many, sin is not absent but he who holds his tongue is wise” (Pr 10:19). It is hard to speak much and not sin – for every sentence raises the chance of sin. So the Preacher gave the wise advice of closing your lips and not talking so much (Pr 17:27-28; Jas 1:19).

When the prophet Isaiah saw the LORD, he was in terror for the sins of his lips (Is 6:1-7). He said, “Woe is me! for I am undone; because I am a man of unclean lips, and I dwell in the midst of a people of unclean lips: for mine eyes have seen the King, the LORD of hosts” (Is 6:5). A right view of God will cause you to hate your speech (Ps 4:4)!

The blunt apostle James had no mercy for the tongue. He said, “And the tongue is a fire, a world of iniquity: so is the tongue among our members, that it defileth the whole body, and setteth on fire the course of nature; and it is set on fire of hell” (Jas 3:6). He said, “But the tongue can no man tame; it is an unruly evil, full of deadly poison” (Jas 3:8).

Your tongue is called your glory for praising God (Ps 16:9; 30:12; 57:8; Acts 2:26). But it also curses men. “Therewith bless we God, even the Father; and therewith curse we men, which are made after the similitude of God. Out of the same mouth proceedeth blessing and cursing. My brethren, these things ought not so to be” (Jas 3:9-10).

You are a fool, if you hide hatred with polite words. Instead of forgiving others and ending conflict, fools cover hatred in their hearts with lies. It is horrible when such evil is in the church. David prayed to be delivered from such hypocrites, whose right hand is a right hand of falsehood and their mouths speak empty pretensions (Ps 144:7-8,11).

You are a fool, if you talk against others. Slander is lying to spread false information or innuendoes about others. Backbiting, talebearing, and whispering are telling the truth about another, but it is information that damages another’s character and reputation. The sin of slander is a violation of the Sixth Commandment against killing, and only very wicked men with evil hearts do it. Limit yourself to saying good things about others.

If you are wise, your tongue is your glory – to praise God and edify others (Ps 30:12; 108:1). It is a precious gift to send worship upward and to feed those around you. If you are a fool, it is your curse – a tool of hypocrisy and murder. It is easy to lie and run others down when they and witnesses are not present to refute you. Be wise (Pr 18:21; Eph 4:29; Col 4:6)! You will give account for every word from your mouth (Matt 12:34-37).

Proverbs 09:09 Wisdom for the Soul

Posted: July 9, 2014 in Acceptance, Bible Study, Encourgement, Inspiration, Personal Growth, Proverbs, Proverbs 09, Spiritual Training, trust in the Lord with all your heart, Uncategorized, Under Gods Command
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Under Gods Command 

Proverbs 9:9 Instruct a wise man and he will be wiser still; teach a righteous man and he will add to his learning.

Great men grow in wisdom and learning. Are you growing – or just growing older? Instruction and teaching are blessings from God, and great men take advantage of them to increase in knowledge and understanding. The character of any man or woman can be easily seen by their degree of growth in wisdom and learning. What is your character?

The proverb and context have two lessons (Pr 9:7-9). First, Solomon forbad rebuking scorners, for they will hate you and your advice. He commended teaching wise men, for they will love you and the truth and wisdom you give them. Can you tell the difference? Your duty is to wisely allocate your efforts and resources to humble and noble hearers.

The second lesson is that character is known by its response to correction and teaching. All men can be classified as scorners, fools, or wise men. What are you? A fool is basically lazy, selfish, and stupid. A scorner is a rebel that hates advice and those giving it. A wise man is a zealous student of truth and wisdom that loves learning and teachers.

You cannot stand still about truth and wisdom. Either you grow in both, or you backslide in both. Either you defeat the foolish impulses of your heart and mind, or they defeat you. Either you are rejecting the world’s philosophy, or the world’s philosophy is seducing you. Either God is guiding you to more truth, or He is hiding truth from you (Luke 8:18)!

You were born ignorant. You should crave learning and wisdom, lest you stay ignorant. Seeking wisdom should be a great goal of your life (Pr 4:7; 16:16). Is it very important to you? If it is, you will apply yourself to take advantage of every opportunity to learn the truth and wisdom of God from your teachers. Are you reading this proverb carefully?

There are special men in the world, because they love to be corrected and taught so they can learn and grow (Pr 1:5; 15:14). These rare people easily reject distracting activities to focus efforts and time on learning wisdom (Pr 18:1-2). A whole assembly once celebrated understanding God’s word (Neh 8:8-12), the eunuch humbly admitted his ignorance and begged for help (Acts 8:30-34), and Cornelius had an eager spirit (Acts 10:33).

It is folly to squander God’s offer of learning opportunities (Pr 15:32). He commanded, “As newborn babes, desire the sincere milk of the word, that ye may grow thereby” (I Pet 2:2). It is a command to desire the word in order to grow. It is suicide to neglect or reject the offers of wisdom that God sends to every man (Pr 8:36). It is disgraceful, if you have been taught long enough to be a teacher, but you still need to be taught (Heb 5:12-14).

What causes men to resent teachers and instruction? Some are stubborn (I Sam 15:23). Some are conceited (Pr 26:12). Some are lazy (Pr 18:1-2). Some are carnal (I Cor 3:1-3). Some prefer fables over sober teaching (II Tim 4:3-4). Some do not focus or prepare; some are discouraged by persecution; some are choked by ambition (Luke 8:11-14).

God expects you to grow in wisdom. He offers it daily. Being without understanding is a sin (Pr 14:8; 19:2; Jer 5:21; Rom 1:31). You are to grow in grace and the knowledge of Jesus Christ (II Pet 3:18). You can surpass your enemies, teachers, and the ancients. How? Keep God’s words with you – meditate on them, and obey them (Ps 119:98-100).

Spiritual Training 09 July 2014

Posted: July 9, 2014 in 1 Corinthians, Acceptance, Bible Study, Encourgement, Inspiration, Personal Growth, Spiritual Training, trust in the Lord with all your heart, Uncategorized, Under Gods Command
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Under Gods Command

1 Corinthians 7:32-34 I would like you to be free from concern. An unmarried man is concerned about the Lord’s affairs-how he can please the Lord. But a married man is concerned about the affairs of this world-How he can please his wife-and his interest are divided. An un-married woman or virgin is concerned about the Lord’s affairs: Her aim is to be devoted to the Lord in both body and spirit. But a married woman is concerned about the affairs of this world-how she can please her husband.

 Some single people feel tremendous pressure to be married. They think their lives can be complete only with a spouse. But Paul underlines one advantage of being single-the potential of a greater focus of Christ and his work.

Lets Bring it Home: If you are unmarried, use your special opportunity to serve Christ wholeheartedly.

Proverbs 8:22 Wisdom for the Soul

Posted: July 8, 2014 in Acceptance, Bible Study, Encourgement, Inspiration, Personal Growth, Proverbs 08, Spiritual Training, trust in the Lord with all your heart, Uncategorized, Under Gods Command
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Under Gods Command 

Proverbs 8:22 “The LORD brought me forth as the first of his works, before his deeds of old; 

How wonderful is wisdom? The LORD God had it all in eternity! Solomon continued his lengthy personification of wisdom as a virtuous woman (Pr 8:1 – 9:5). Lady Wisdom is the first person, singular, objective pronoun “me.” Before the LORD Jehovah created anything, when He inhabited eternity alone, He owned all the wisdom of the universe.

At this point in personifying wisdom, Solomon should provoke you to value wisdom most highly by virtue of God’s choice and use of it from eternity and in the creation of all things (Pr 8:22-31). If wisdom is so gloriously advantageous and wonderful that Jehovah Himself chose and used it, how much more should men esteem it? This is the lesson!

What is personification? It is a figure of speech in which a person is used to represent an abstract concept. Men refer to freedom as Lady Liberty, natural events as Mother Nature, national defense as Uncle Sam, and aging as Father Time. King Solomon used a desirable lady to represent the concept of wisdom (Pr 1:20-33; 2:4; 3:15-18; 4:5-13; 8:1-36; 9:1-5).

What is wisdom? It is the power of right judgment. It is the ability to discern any matter or situation and know the perfect solution. When understood as a spiritual virtue of God and Christians, its analysis and solutions always maximize the glory of God and His holiness. Wisdom is the disciplined thinking that always arrives at right conclusions.

Who is the LORD? When the King James Bible uses LORD in capital letters, it means Jehovah – I AM THAT I AM. This infinite and independent Spirit, Creator of all, eternally possessed all wisdom. He owes no one for it, for who has been His counselor (Rom 11:33-36)? He alone is the origin and source of wisdom for Himself or any other.

Jesus of Nazareth, God’s Son by Mary, grew in wisdom as He matured (Luke 2:52). Such words speak distinctly and only of His human nature. In His divine nature, He is Jehovah Himself, in Whom are hid all the treasures of wisdom and knowledge (Col 2:3). If you desire to be like Jesus Christ, then you should be growing in wisdom. Are you?

God did not experiment, using trial and error, when He created. He had infinite wisdom before He created. Everything was very good (Gen 1:31). He sees the past, present, and future equally. There are no contingencies to Him. He understands everything forever. There are no surprises to Him, no difficulties, no perplexities, and no complexities.

Pagan gods or idols do not have even the five natural senses, let alone wisdom, and the God of the Bible ridicules them for such a fatal handicap (Ps 115:1-8; 135:1-21). Their worshippers may have five senses, but God ridicules them as equally ignorant to the totem poles and other images and statues they worship (Is 44:18-20).

If Jehovah God chose to possess all wisdom in eternity for His actions, are you pursuing wisdom with great zeal for your choices (Pr 4:7; 16:16)? It is surely worth the effort (Pr 8:11; Job 28:12-19). Inspired and preserved Scripture and His teachers are God’s gift of wisdom to you before all men (Deut 4:6; Ps 119:98-100; Mal 2:7; II Tim 3:15-17).

Spiritual Training 08 July 2014

Posted: July 8, 2014 in 1 Corinthians, Acceptance, Bible Study, Encourgement, Inspiration, Personal Growth, Spiritual Training, trust in the Lord with all your heart, Uncategorized, Under Gods Command
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Under Gods Command

1 Corinthians 7:24-31 Brothers, each man, as responsible to God, should remain in the situation God called him to. Now about virgins: I have no command from the Lord, but I give a judgment as one who by the Lord’s mercy is trustworthy. Because of the present crisis, I think that it is good for you to remain as you are. Are you married? Do not seek divorce. Are you unmarried? Do not look for a wife. But if you do marry, you have not sinned; and if a virgin marries, she has not sinned. But those who marry will face many troubles in this life, and I want to spare you this. What I mean, brothers, is that the time is short. From now on those who have wives should live as it they had none; those who mourn, as if they did not; those who are happy, as it they were not; those who buy something, as if it were not theirs to keep; those who use the things of the world, as if not engrossed in them. For this world in its present form is passing away.

 Paul probably foresaw the impending persecution that the Roman government would soon bring upon Christians. He gave this practical advice because being unmarried would mean less suffering and more freedom to throw one’s life into the cause of Christ (7:29), even to the point of fearlessly dying for him. Paul’s advice reveals his single-minded devotion to spreading the Good News.

Many people naively think that marriage will solve all their problems. Here are some problems marriage won’t solve: (1) loneliness, (2) sexual temptation, (3) satisfaction of one’s deepest emotional needs, (4) elimination of life’s difficulties. Marriage alone does not hold two people together, but commitment does—commitment to Christ and to each other despite conflicts and problems. As wonderful as it is, marriage does not automatically solve every problem.

Lets Bring it Home: Whether married or single, we must be content with our situation and focus on Christ, not on loved ones, to help address our problems.

Paul urges all believers to make the most of their time before Christ’s return. Every person in every generation should have this sense of urgency about telling the Good News to others. Life is short—there’s not much time!

Paul urges believers not to regard marriage, home, or financial security as the ultimate goals of life. As much as possible, we should live unhindered by the cares of this world, not getting involved with burdensome mortgages, budgets, investments, or debts that might keep us from doing God’s work. A married man or woman, as Paul points out (7:33, 34), must take care of earthly responsibilities—but they should make every effort to keep them modest and manageable.

 

Spiritual Training 07 July 2014

Posted: July 7, 2014 in 1 Corinthians, Acceptance, Bible Study, Encourgement, Inspiration, Personal Growth, Spiritual Training, trust in the Lord with all your heart, Uncategorized, Under Gods Command
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Under Gods Command

1 Corinthians 7:23 You were bought at a price; do not become slaves of men. Brothers, each man, as responsible to God, should remain in the situation God called him to.

Slavery was common throughout the Roman Empire. Some Christians in the Corinthian church were undoubtedly slaves. Paul said that although the Christian slaves were slaves to other human beings, they were free from the power of sin in their lives. People today are slaves to sin until they commit their lives to Christ, who alone can conquer sin’s power. Sin, pride, and fear no longer have any claim over us, just as a slave owner no longer has power over the slaves he has sold. The Bible says we become Christ’s slaves when we become Christians (Romans 6:18), but this actually means we gain our freedom, because sin no longer controls us.

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