Read 1 Corinthians 13:4. Why does genuine kindness have such positive appeal to other people? Where do you see God’s kindness in His dealings with humanity? “Kindness” is the word frequently used in describing God’s dealings with His people. Kindness also describes our dealings with others in their failures. God could be quite harsh in … Continue reading –>
Romans 14:17 reads: “for the kingdom of God is not eating and drinking, but righteousness and peace and joy in the Holy Spirit” (NASB). That is, joy is love’s reaction to the blessings of God and His great mercy and forgiveness. Now, human joy often is focused upon earthly things and is affected by the … Continue reading –>
Read Galatians 5:22 and 1 Corinthians 13. Why is love the first and foremost aspect of the fruit of the Spirit? How does love affect all the following aspects of this fruit? Love appropriately leads and crowns the various characteristics of the fruit of the Spirit and permeates the whole fruit. In a sense all … Continue reading –>
Read John 15:1-11. Why can fruit come forth only out of a living relationship with Jesus, the vine? Why is abiding in Jesus so important? How do we abide in Him? The first secret to genuine Christian fruit bearing is to abide in Christ. Apart from Christ, we cannot produce genuine spiritual fruit. The fruit … Continue reading –>
Read for This Week’s Study: John 15:1-11, Gal. 5:22, 1 Corinthians 13, Rom. 14:17, Eph. 5:9, Matt. 5:5. Memory Text: “But the fruit of the Spirit is love, joy, peace, patience, kindness, goodness, faithfulness, gentleness, self-control; against such things there is no law” (Galatians 5:22-23, NASB). The fruit of the Spirit is the true essence … Continue reading –>
Read Ellen G. White, “Like Unto Leaven,” pp. 95-102 in Christ’s Object Lessons. How do we even begin to grasp the holiness of God when our nature is fallen and corrupt and His is uncompromisingly holy? His holiness defines Him as singular and separated from the world of sin and death that we humans experience. … Continue reading –>
Read Psalm 15:1-2; Ephesians 4:22-24; and 2 Timothy 2:21. What do they tell us about holiness? Holiness is the precondition for enjoying the happiness of fellowship with God. It is the precondition for our usefulness to God. We know the truth of the saying: “Sow an action, reap a habit; sow a habit, reap a … Continue reading –>
We know that God calls us to keep His law. The question arises, though, why should we keep His law if we cannot be saved by it? The answer is found in the idea of holiness. Read Romans 7:12 and 1 Timothy 1:8. What attributes does Paul use to describe the law? How does the … Continue reading –>
You can view an in-depth discussion of “The Holy Spirit and Living a Holy Life” 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 … Continue reading –>
What do 1 Corinthians 6:11, Titus 3:5, and Hebrews 13:12 tell us about sanctification? Our sanctification is accomplished by faith (Heb. 11:6) through the power of the Holy Spirit (2 Thess. 2:13, 1 Pet. 1:2). The apostle Paul writes: “but you were washed, but you were sanctified, but you were justified in the name of … Continue reading –>
