Genesis chapters two and three are filled with such important foundational teachings for the entire Bible, including Jesus' teachings. This lesson covers chapter two and the first section of chapter three and addresses the following topics...
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Genesis 1 covers the creation of the world. The chapter raises many significant questions: * What does the creation account reveal about who God is? * How should we understand the creation of the world? What is reasonable? * Why do so many smart people reject God as the Creator of the universe? * How did Paul argue God as Creator of the universe to help intelligent people....
This lesson will focus on one of the most pivotal days in the history of the world. From this Old Testament example, we will address four of the eight reasons discussed in our last lesson as to why Christians should read the Old Testament....
Hebrews 6 tells us that there are six elementary doctrines (teachings) of the Christian faith, which the Hebrew writer appears to assume Christians should master before moving on to maturity. Two of these are the resurrection and judgment. We recently taught on the resurrection. What about judgment? What does Jesus teach about it? Why is this teaching important? Why do we rarely speak about judgment? What can we learn about God through Christ's teaching on eternal blessings and punishment? The g...
Hebrews 6 tells us that there are six elementary doctrines (teachings) of the Christian faith, which the Hebrew writer appears to assume Christians should master before moving on to maturity. Two of these are the resurrection and judgment. We recently taught on the resurrection. What about judgment? What does Jesus teach about it? Why is this teaching important? Why do we rarely speak about judgment? What can we learn about God through Christ's teaching on eternal blessings and punishment? The g...
There are many reasons Christians give for avoiding the Old Testament, which makes up three-quarters of the Bible. This lesson inspires us to dig into the treasures of the Old Testament, making the case that God has provided the Old Testament Scriptures for the benefit of Christians....
Paul spends an entire chapter on the resurrection of the dead. In the previous lesson, we provided an overview of chapter fifteen with its key themes. In this lesson, we dig deeper into the chapter to explore further why a correct understanding of the resurrection is so central to the Christian faith and obedience to Jesus' teachings, how an incorrect understanding can lead to worldliness in the church, and how we can use the Scriptures and reason to defend the resurrection to non-believers. Thi...
After addressing many issues in the church in Corinth, Paul turns to one last problem, that some Christians in the church did not believe in the resurrection of the dead. Paul spends an entire chapter explaining the centrality of the resurrection to the Christian faith, including what raised from the dead means and why it matters so much. While the resurrection of the dead is one of the elementary teachings of the Christian faith (Hebrews 6:1-2), this foundational teaching is misunderstood by ma...
In this passage, Paul instructs the church in Corinth that their women should keep silent in the church, that they are to be submissive, and they are to learn from their husbands. He goes on further to state that it is shameful for women to speak in church. Does Paul really mean this? Was this instruction only for the church in Corinth at that time? What does Paul mean by "being silent"? We tackle these questions by looking at this and related Scriptures that speak to the Biblical role of men an...
Music plays a predominate role in the American culture, and in most cultures around the world. What can we learn from the Scriptures about music and the role God intended it to play in our lives? This lesson looks at both good and bad examples from Scripture and asks us to examine our own engagement with music in light of both.
1 Corinthians 14:1-33 includes two somewhat controversial issues: speaking in tongues and what it was like when Christians came together for worship. The lesson addresses three questions in regards to the gift of tongues: 1) What is speaking in tongues? 2) What was the purpose of speaking in tongues? and 3) Is speaking in tongues available to the Church today? We are also asked what we can learn from this passage as to what Church should look like when we come together as Christians....
This lesson tackles a foundational and often misunderstood teaching of the Kingdom of God revealed in many of Jesus' parables, including the parable of the wheat and the tares (weeds). God will ultimately separate the good and the evil at the last day. This lesson addresses our responsibility as individual Christians to strive to be wheat, good fish, wise virgins, and properly attired guests at the Kingdom banquet. The lesson also addresses our responsibility to address sin in the Church....
Each year, brothers and sisters from around the world gather in Pennsylvania to provide a forum for Biblical teaching for those who desire to live as disciples of Christ. One of the primary goals of this event is to be a place where kingdom-minded Christians from various backgrounds can meet one another for edification and encouragement, and to learn from each other. This year's theme was discipleship....
Potter and the Clay
The seven feasts of the Lord
1 Corinthians 13 loving one another
In chapter twelve, Paul turns his attention to the miraculous gifts of the Holy Spirit. What does the Bible teach about the miraculous gifts, including gifts of healing, speaking in tongues, and the working of miracles? Are these spiritual gifts available today? Many Christians understand the miraculous gifts to have died within a generation of the Apostles. But is this what the Bible teaches? This passage also paints a beautiful picture of Christian unity within the body of Christ, a major them...
Resurrection, prophecies
Lessons from the life of Joseph
In this passage, Paul tells the Corinthian Church that some of them are weak, ill, and spiritually asleep (dead) because of their failure to properly celebrate the Lord's Supper. He then explains how the Lord's Supper can bring life. This lesson is divided into three parts: 1) Paul's rebuke of the Church (with specifics as to what they were doing wrong), 2) Paul's instruction on the Lord's Supper, and 3) Practicals we can glean from the Scriptures in regards to celebrating the Lord's Supper....
1 Corinthians 11
Part 1 of this lesson tackles chapters 8 and 10, in which Paul discusses the practice of eating food sacrificed to idols, an issue that is causing division in the church. While sacrificing food to idols is not common in the United States, Christians face this issue in many parts of the world. There are also important lessons for us to learn in resolving Church conflict. In Part 2 of this lesson, we look at two other related passages: Acts 15 and Romans 14. In Acts 15 we are given a beautiful exa...
A defining mark of men and women we find in the Bible is their understanding of God's faithfulness. Those who grasped this attribute of God lived in a way that brought God great honor and accomplished his purposes....
The story of Esther has many lessons to encourage us in times of adversity, to inspire our faithfulness, courage, and love, and to give us hope in God's great power to accomplish His will. This lesson covers the entire story of Esther, looking at the characters of Mordecai, Esther, and Haman and what we can learn from each.
This lesson highlights wisdom from Solomon (who the Bible calls the wisest man on earth) to give wisdom to the young, as well as to the old and wise. What are the benefits of wisdom? How do we get it? Are there blessings that come from fearing God? How do the people we spend our time with impact our character and how wise we can become? Solomon provides answers to these questions.
In this passage of Scripture, Paul warns the Corinthians of sins that can destroy one's relationship with God and disqualify Paul himself, as well as the Church, from the ultimate prize of eternal life.
In this passage, we are inspired by Paul's example to win people to Christ. Paul defends, in great detail, the rigth to be supported in the full time ministry, as well as explains why he gave up this right.
What is the greatest obstacle to helping those in need? This lesson puts meat on Jesus' command to love your neighbor as yourself.
What does the Bible say about being single? In this passage, Paul provides instructions to those who are single in the church. We may be surprised at what Paul (and Jesus) teach about the single life, that this is a preferred lifestyle to the married life, if lived in devotion to God.
