Societies establish hierarchies. Wealthy or well-educated people usually acquire the highest positions. Good moral citizens, the ordinary people, normally occupy the middle rungs on the social ladder. That leaves the bottom dwellers, those such as prostitutes, substance abusers, criminals, the homeless, and others. During Christ’s time, that list also included lepers and tax collectors. Read … Continue reading –>
Read for This Week’s Study: Matt. 21:28-32, John 8:1-11, Mark 5:1-20, John 4:5-32, Matt. 9:9-13. Memory Text: The woman then left her waterpot, went her way into the city, and said to the men, Come, see a Man who told me all things that I ever did. Could this be the Christ? (John 4:28-30, NKJV). … Continue reading –>
Megy groaned as another contraction tore through her body. She had been in labor for18 hours, and her baby hadn’t arrived yet. Four men carried Megy on a stretcher toward the river several miles away, where they hoped to meet a public vehicle that could take Megy to the government clinic. Storm clouds gathered on … Continue reading –>
Further Study: Read Ellen G. White, The Lifework, pp. 269, 270, in Education; and Laboring for the Middle Class, pp. 564-566, in Evangelism. In this closing work of the gospel there is a vast field to be occupied; and, more than ever before, the work is to enlist helpers from the common people. Both the … Continue reading –>
[Thought questions for Discipling the “ordinary” February 5, 2014] 1. The great equalizer. How hard should we work to bring the wealthy, the influential, the highly educated into our fellowship? If we are all equal in Christ, doesn’t that equality extend to powerful politicians and brilliant scientists? Or is it our mission to disregard the highly … Continue reading –>
Perhaps the most socially attractive feature of primitive Christianity was the absence of class distinctions. Dividing walls had crumbled beneath the gospel’s weight. The common person triumphed through Christ. Christ transformed the ordinary into the extraordinary. Carpenters, tax collectors, stonecutters, queens, domestic servants, priests, Greeks, Romans, men, women, wealthy, and the destitute all became equals … Continue reading –>
The word of the day is Potential. Everyone has potential. No one can decide what its limits are. Only God knows. And we must try to develop potential; not just in ourselves but also in those we serve. Potential. “In the common walks of life there is many a man patiently treading the round of … Continue reading –>
An evangelist once celebrated (perhaps bragged about) the attendance of quality upper-class people at his seminars. (One would hope he equally celebrated the attendance of the more ordinary types, as well.) With Christ, however, no class distinctions existed; no one was ordinary; everyone was an exception. Not surprisingly, Jesus reached the masses with commonplace … Continue reading –>
Key Thought : People who know their limitations and trust God for guidance can accomplish extraordinary things for Him. [Lesson plan for Discipling the “Ordinary” February 3, 2014] 1. Have a volunteer read Luke 2:21-24. a. Ask class members to share a thought on what the most important point in this text is. b. Why … Continue reading –>
In the New Testament, Peter stands out as one of the most influential of all the disciples. In fact, he ended up being one of the most influential people in all of human history. Talk about changing the ordinary into the extraordinary! Read the following texts. How do they help us to understand how Peter … Continue reading –>
