Even a superficial study of church history makes it clear that it’s all too easy to develop ideas about God and then to worship these ideas instead of God Himself, the God revealed in the Bible. As the skeptic Voltaire quipped: “God made man in His image, and man has returned the compliment.” We may … Continue reading –>
“Thus the heavens and the earth were finished, and all the host of them. And on the seventh day God ended his work which he had made; and he rested on the seventh day from all his work which he had made. And God blessed the seventh day, and sanctified it: because that in it … Continue reading –>
Read for This Week’s Study: Matt. 11:10; Mark 1:2; Gen. 2:3; Job 42:5, 6; Luke 5:1–11; Luke 4:31–36; Isa. 6:1–3; Rev. 4:8, 9. Memory Text: “Exalt the Lord our God, and worship at his holy hill; for the Lord our God is holy” (Psalm 99:9). Key Thought: Scripture gives much attention to God’s holiness. What does this holiness tell us about what God is like … Continue reading –>
What is your attitude toward obedience? a. I’ll do what I want. I don’t care what God wants me to do. b. If God will give me what I want first, then I’ll give Him what He wants. c. I’ll give God what He wants first, with faith that He’ll give me what I want. … Continue reading –>
How do grace and judgment work together? Here’s how inspiration reveals it. “While Jesus is pleading for the subjects of His grace, Satan accuses them before God as transgressors. The great deceiver has sought to lead them into skepticism, to cause them to lose confidence in God, to separate themselves from His love, and to … Continue reading –>
Jacque Thermil Roseline lives in a village in northwestern Haiti. She felt rich, for she owned three cows. But she also felt grateful to God for her wealth and had dedicated one of her cows to God. Now the cow was about to give birth, and Roseline would give the calf to the Lord. One … Continue reading –>
The world totters on the brink of moral collapse.1 The Judge of All is about to pass judgment on those who have refused to acknowledge Him as their Leader Eternal. “Is there anyone else,” He calls out, “anyone else who wants to be free from the burden of sin?” A few people struggle towards Him. The rest slink away. … Continue reading –>
Key Thought: Justice demands the death penalty for our sins. Yet grace through the suffering of Christ on our behalf delivers us from death if we accept it. [Teaching Plan for “The God of Grace and Judgment” January 25, 2012] 1. Have a volunteer read Ecclesiastes 12:13,14. A. Ask class members to share a short … Continue reading –>
“Fear them not therefore: for there is nothing covered, that shall not be revealed; and hid, that shall not be known”(Matt. 10:26).1 Looking around at the world, we shouldn’t have a problem understanding the idea of judgment and condemnation. One doesn’t have to be a believing Christian to realize that something is radically wrong with … Continue reading –>
Most everyone is familiar with John 3:16. What comes after, though, helps flesh it out and explain it even better. Read John 3:17–21. What does it say about judgment? About grace? How do these verses reveal to us how grace and judgment work together? The word translated “condemn” in verse 17 is also translated in some versions as “judge.” … Continue reading –>
Critics of the Bible make a big deal of the fact that other ancient civilizations had their own flood stories. They argue that the Bible story isn’t unique, original, or even true but is merely a copy of some previous myth or legend.1 On the other hand, those who believe that the Bible is the … Continue reading –>
Think about this: before sin, there was no need of grace because there was nothing to forgive, nothing to pardon, nothing to cover. It’s the same with judgment. Before sin, there was nothing to judge, nothing to condemn, nothing to be punished. Both grace and judgment arise, at least in a human context, only because … Continue reading –>
