Then he said to the crowd, “If any of you wants to be my follower, you must turn from your selfish ways, take up your cross daily, and follow me. Luke 9:23 NLT In Jesus’ time and place, when people picked up their cross, it was to die, just like Jesus picked up His cross to … Continue reading –>
Read for This Week’s Study: Ezekiel 8:1-18, Rom. 1:22-25, Jer. 37:1-10, Jer. 38:1-6, Jer. 29:1-14, Dan. 9:2. Memory Text: Also, seek the peace and prosperity of the city to which I have carried you into exile. Pray to the Lord for it, because if it prospers, you too will prosper (Jeremiah 29:7, NIV). Within a few … Continue reading –>
Treating the wounds was nearly as painful as the burns themselves. Every day nurses removed the bandages and soaked the burns in salt water. Then they gently scraped the burns to remove the dead skin. This would help prevent infection. The nurses taught Mrs. Banda how to wash the wounds and apply the medicine. She … Continue reading –>
As we have seen, people want to believe good news, not bad. They wanted to believe, for instance, in Hananiah’s message, not Jeremiah’s. Today the same thing happens as well. Many still insist, for instance, that our world will only improve over time. Yet, even an atheist like Terry Eagleton sees just how farcical that … Continue reading –>
Hear now, Hananiah; The Lord hath not sent thee; but thou makest this people to trust in a lie (Jer. 28:15). The answer about who was right, whether Jeremiah or Hananiah, came soon enough. Jeremiah 28:16-17 tells the fate of the false prophet, which was just what the true prophet had said it would be. … Continue reading –>
Key Thought : Jeremiah lived out his message in a personal way, as he abstained from a lot of social interaction. Jeremiah’s Yoke November 21-27, 2015 1. Have a volunteer read Jeremiah 16:1-8. a. Ask class members to share a thought on what the most important point in this text is. b. Why did God … Continue reading –>
Back in 1991 my wife and I leased an old red brick building in downtown Nampa, Idaho, as our art studio. For $200/month we got 5,000 square feet of space on the second floor of a 100-year-old building, including a large room we used as our photo studio. After a year we ended up hiring … Continue reading –>
The battle between the prophets wasn’t just one of words, but of deeds as well. In obedience to the command of God, Jeremiah put the wooden yoke around his neck; this was an overt symbol of the message that he had carried to the people. What was the prophetic symbolism of Hananiah’s act? Jer. 28:1-11. … Continue reading –>
You can view an in-depth discussion of “Jeremiah’s Yoke” 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. … Continue reading –>
Bad news is bad news, and often we don’t want to hear it, or we want to rationalize it away. Such was the case here in Judah with Jeremiah and the yoke that he bore, an unmistakable message of warning to the people. The amazement of the assembled council of nations knew no bounds when … Continue reading –>
Read Jeremiah 27:1-18. What is the message of the Lord to the people? Why would this seem treasonous to many who heard it? The yoke Jeremiah had to put on his body was an unmistakable sign of the humiliation that the nation suffered; it’s what we call a military occupation. (In Deuteronomy 28:48 and 1 … Continue reading –>
No question, Jeremiah’s lot in life wasn’t an easy one (he would be the first to admit it too!). Things, though, were even harder than we might have imagined. Read Jeremiah 16:1-13. What was the Lord’s message to Jeremiah here? However harsh, in what ways would it have been a blessing to the prophet? (Compare … Continue reading –>
