Without Christ, we were slaves of sin, slaves to the evil impulses of our fallen human nature. We lived in a self-centered way, pleasing ourselves instead of living to the glory of God. The unavoidable result of this spiritual slavery was death, because the wages of sin is death.
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But Jesus came to proclaim liberty to the captives . . . , to set at liberty those who are oppressed (Luke 4:18, NKJV). These aren’t [...]
You can view a discussion of the current lesson in the Hope Sabbath School class led by Pastor Derek Morris. (Adobe Flash Player version.) A Youtube version of this week’s lesson at Hope Sabbath School is below. You can download the video, the MP3 audio, and the lesson outline from the HopeTV Sabbath School Site. You might also want to bookmark the HopeSS Youtube channel.
John the Baptist described Jesus as the Lamb of God who takes away the sin of the world (John 1:29, NKJV). This image was easy for any Israelite familiar with the sacrifices offered in the temple and the sacred history recorded in the Old Testament to understand. Abraham had revealed his faith that God will provide for Himself the lamb for a burnt offering (NKJV); and the Lord did provide the animal to be sacrificed in place of Isaac (Gen. [...]
A simple reading of the Gospels shows that we owe our salvation entirely to God. Jesus did not come to this world because we invited Him, but because the Father, out of love for us, sent Him. The Father’s initiative is confirmed by Christ’s frequent use of the phrase He who sent Me and the Father who sent Me (NKJV). (Read John 7:28, John 8:29, John 12:49.)
What else does the Father do for our salvation, according to John 6:44?
In spite [...]
In John 3:16 two verbs are used to describe what God did for our salvation. How do these verbs relate to each other? What do they reveal regarding the origin of our salvation?
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The English verb to love, especially the casual way it is often used today, is totally inadequate to express the depth of solicitous interest expressed by the Greek verb agapao, to love. In the New Testament, this term and its related noun [...]
Read for This Week’s Study: Luke 18:9-14; John 6:44; Luke 15:3-10; Matt. 20:28; John 8:34-36; John 6:35, John 6:47-51.
Memory Text: For God so loved the world that He gave His only begotten Son, that whoever believes in Him should not perish but have everlasting life (John 3:16, NKJV).
Death, we often say, is just part of life. No, death is the negation of life, not part of it. Yet, so used to death, we mislabel it, calling it the opposite of [...]
You can view a discussion of the current lesson in the Hope Sabbath School class led by Pastor Derek Morris. (Adobe Flash Player version.) A Youtube version of this week’s lesson at Hope Sabbath School is below. You can download the video, the MP3 audio, and the lesson outline from the HopeTV Sabbath School Site. You might also want to bookmark the HopeSS Youtube channel.
I’m a fourth-generation Adventist in the Czech Republic, the second-most atheistic country in Europe. Going to church was part of my life, like grocery shopping and eating. I enjoyed church because I had friends there, but I didn’t have a relationship with God.
I had developed a rather twisted picture of God. Many other young people did, too, and lots of them stopped attending church when they enrolled in a university.
The Adventist Church leaders prayed for a way to reach university-age [...]
Further Study: Ellen G. White, The Power Promised, p. 19-23, in Testimonies for the Church, vol. 8; The Gift of the Spirit, p. 47-56, in The Acts of the Apostles.
At all times and in all places, in all sorrows and in all afflictions, when the outlook seems dark and the future perplexing, and we feel helpless and alone, the Comforter will be sent in answer to the prayer of faith. Circumstances may separate us from every earthly friend; but no [...]
No doubt, it is important to know who the Holy Spirit is. But this knowledge would be pointless unless it leads us to completely open our lives to be filled with Him. Jesus made it clear that if we fail to invite the presence of the heavenly Guest to abide in us daily, there is another kind of spirit that is eager to enter into the empty life and produce a spiritual disaster (Matt. 12:43-45). Jesus Himself was filled with [...]
