“May the Lord make your love increase and overflow for each other and for everyone else” (1 Thess. 3:12, NIV). Jesus prayed to His Father that His followers would “be one as we are one” (John 17:22, NIV). Summarize what Jesus was saying here, focusing specifically on the role of love needed in order to achieve this oneness. … Continue reading –>
What illustration does Paul use to describe the new unity that exists between peoples in Christ? How has Christ made “one” out of “two”? Eph. 2:11-22; see also Gal. 3:28. The cross of Christ removes the barriers that separate people from each other. Walls separated worshipers in the Jewish temple, men from women, and Jews from Gentiles. Describing … Continue reading –>
Read for This Week’s Study: Gen. 33:12-14, Ruth 1:16-18, John 17:21-26, Gal. 3:28, Eph. 2:11-22, Eph. 5:21-6:9. Memory Text: “That they all may be one, as You, Father, are in Me, and I in You; that they also may be one in Us, that the world may believe that You sent Me” (John 17:21, NKJV). Family life represents different seasons of life for … Continue reading –>
A Strange Light By Andrew McChesney Ruth Jereh sang heartily as she walked home from the bar in her hometown, Mazabuka, in southern Zambia. It was Friday evening, and she had spent the entire day drinking beer. Suddenly a blinding light appeared in front of her. The light hung in space, and Ruth stared at … Continue reading –>
Further Thought: The Royal Love Song “Marriage has received Christ’s blessing, and it is to be regarded as a sacred institution. True religion is not to counterwork the Lord’s plans. God ordained that man and woman should be united in holy wedlock, to raise up families that, crowned with honor, would be symbols of the … Continue reading –>
God had a special purpose in creating humankind as male and female (Gen. 1:26-28). While each bears His image, the joining of gender opposites in the “one flesh” of marriage reflects the unity within the Godhead in a special way. The union of male and female also provides for procreation of a new life, an original … Continue reading –>
Read Song of Solomon 4:8-5:1. Song of Solomon 4:16 and Song of Sol. 5:1 form the very center of this book and describe, as it were, its climax as the marriage between Solomon and the Shulamite is consummated. To what is Solomon referring in the following passages? Song of Sol. 4:12, Song of Sol. 4:16; Song of Sol. 5:1; Song of Sol. 8:8-10. In … Continue reading –>
Many have seen a “return to Eden” theme in the Song of Solomon. Though the couple described is not the first man and woman, the poem calls to mind the earliest garden. God’s plan that they be “one flesh” (Gen. 2:24-25) is portrayed throughout in delicate metaphors and symbols. How does the Song of Solomon present a commitment … Continue reading –>
Describe various aspects of love presented in the Song of Solomon. Song of Sol. 1:2, Song of Sol. 1:13; Song of Sol. 2:10-13, Song of Sol. 2:16; Song of Sol. 3:11; Song of Sol. 4:1-7; Song of Sol. 5:16; Song of Sol. 6:6; Song of Sol. 7:1-9; Song of Sol. 8:6-7. The Song of Solomon shows how friends spend time together, communicate openly, and care about … Continue reading –>
Based on the following passages, how would you characterize the Bible’s view of the human body? Gen. 2:7; Ps. 63:1; Ps. 84:2; 1 Cor. 6:19-20; 1 Thess. 5:23. Some religions believe in dualism, a philosophy that views the human body as a problem for the life of the spirit. That is, the body is deemed bad while the “spirit” is deemed … Continue reading –>
