Bible Study - Sabbath School Podcast

Sabbath Afternoon Read for This Week's Study:   1 Cor. 1:12-17, Rom. 1:29, 1 Cor. 1:10, 1 Cor. 3:1-4, Phil. 2:5-8, 2 Cor. 11:23-28, Col. 1:24. Memory Text:  "I appeal to you, brothers, by the name of our Lord Jesus Christ, that all of you agree, and that there be no divisions among you, but that you be united in the same mind and the same judgment"  ( 1 Corinthians 1:10 , ESV) . Thos...

Further Thought:  Read Ellen G. White, "Calvary," pp. 741-757, in The Desire of Ages . "To the minds of multitudes living at the present time, the cross of Calvary is surrounded by sacred memories. Hallowed associations are connected with the scenes of the crucifixion. But in Paul's day the cross was regarded with feelings of repulsion and horror. To uphold as the Saviour of man...

Christ, the Power and Wisdom of God In  1 Corinthians 1:19-20, 30, and 31 , Paul talks about how God's wisdom and human wisdom are incredibly different and, thus, mutually exclusive. Notice that Paul does not reject wisdom as such, but he rejects the kind of human wisdom that tries to compete with God. Human wisdom is incapable of freeing men from sin. Only Christ, the wisdom of God, can perfo...

A Messiah Crucified Paul wrote that the "Jews demand signs and Greeks seek wisdom"  ( 1 Cor. 1:22 , ESV) . The Cross--the idea of God, the Messiah, being crucified--was not a sign that the Jews had expected. Nor was it the kind of wisdom that the Greeks wanted. It went against everyone's expectations. In fact, all one has to do is read how the disciples reacted to the idea of Jesus b...

Power to Those Who Are Being Saved The message of  1 Corinthians 1:18  is too clear for one to miss the point. What the Cross means depends on the way one looks at it. It is foolishness for those in rebellion against God, but it is power for those who long for His salvation. Read  Colossians 1:20 , and  1 Peter 2:24 . What did Jesus accomplish for us on the cross? As we have already seen, in preac...

Foolishness to Those Who Are Perishing In contrasting human foolishness to divine wisdom, Paul states that the "message of the cross is foolishness to those who are perishing" ( 1 Cor. 1:18 , NKJV). This is the first of six references to foolishness or foolish in  1 Corinthians 1:18-31 . Read  1 Corinthians 1:20-21, 23, 25, and 27 . How do these references to foolishness help us understa...

The Gospel of the Cross Paul says that the message of the Cross is the power of God to us. It is not surprising that "Jesus Christ and Him crucified" is the center of his preaching ( 1 Cor. 2:2 , NKJV). Read  1 Corinthians 1:17-31 . What important point is Paul making here? In  1 Corinthians 1:18-31 , Paul deals with a contrast between human foolishness and divine wisdom. The Cross has t...

Sabbath Afternoon Read for This Week's Study:   1 Cor. 1:17-31, Col. 1:20, 1 Pet. 2:24, Acts 13:16-47, 1 Cor. 2:1-5 Memory Text:  "For the message of the cross is foolishness to those who are perishing, but to us who are being saved it is the power of God" ( 1 Corinthians 1:18 , NIV). Cicero, a pagan Roman writer and orator, had told the Roman people to not even think about the cross...

Further Thought:  Read Ellen G. White, "Corinth," pp. 243-254, in  The Acts of the Apostles . "In preaching the gospel in Corinth, the apostle followed a course different from that which had marked his labors at Athens. ... He determined to avoid elaborate arguments and discussions, and 'not to know anything' among the Corinthians 'save Jesus Christ, and Him crucified.&#...

Paul's Letters to the Corinthians 💌 Read  1 Corinthians 1:11-13 ;  1 Corinthians 4:14 ;  1 Corinthians 5:11 ;  1 Corinthians 7:1 ; and  1 Corinthians 14:37 ,  40 . Also read  2 Corinthians 1:12 ,  2 Corinthians 2:9 ,  2 Corinthians 11:3 , and  2 Corinthians 13:10 . How do these passages help us understand why Paul wrote letters to the Corinthians? Paul was in Ephesus when he wrote 1 Corinthia...

"Many in This City"🏙️ Read  Acts 18:4-8 . What were the results of Paul's preaching? The work of Paul among the Jews at Corinth was not as fruitful as he wanted it to be. He had to face some hostility and hatred. The Bible says that "they opposed him and blasphemed" ( Acts 18:6 , NKJV). When the object of the Greek verb  blasphēmeō  ("to blaspheme") is a human bei...

The City of Corinth🌆 Read  Acts 18:1-3 ,  1 Corinthians 5:9-11 , and  1 Corinthians 8:4 . What can we infer about Corinth's economy, morality, and religious life? Corinth was an important center of the ancient world, renowned for its prosperous commerce. The city was destroyed by Rome in 146 B.C. and rebuilt by Julius Caesar as a Roman colony in 44 B.C. It is this Roman Corinth that appears i...

From Athens to Corinth Read  Acts 17:16-34 . Where was Paul before going to Corinth, and what did he do there? Acts 17:16-34  describes Paul's preaching to the Athenians before his going to Corinth. Apparently, he did not plan to visit Athens at that moment, but went there with the help of some Friends because of the opposition that he faced at Berea ( Acts 17:13-15 ). Those who went with Paul to...

Paul, a God-called Apostle of Jesus Paul begins his letter to the Corinthians by identifying himself as an apostle of Jesus, called "through the will of God" ( 1 Cor. 1:1 ; compare with  2 Cor. 1:1 ). His conviction regarding who he is in relation to Jesus is so firm that, with a few exceptions, this is the way he opens all his letters. Read  1 Corinthians 1:1  and  Romans 1:1 . What two elements...

Sabbath AfternoonRead for This Week’s Study: 1 Cor. 1:1, Gal. 1:1, Acts17:16–34, 1 Cor. 5:9–11, Acts 18:4–10, 2 Cor. 2:4.Memory Text: “One night the Lord said to Paul in a vision, ‘Donot be afraid, but speak and do not be silent; for I am with you,and no one will lay a hand on you to harm you, for there are manyin this city who are my people’ ” (Acts 18:9, 10, NRSV). The great English missionary W...

The Essence of Christian Life and Witness - an introduction Writing letters is an age-old activity that has not become obsolete. We’ve merely changed the way that letters are written. Yes, social media superseded paper. However, in their essence, emails and other forms of electronic letters exert basically the same function: they connect people by exchanging information, feelings, and thoughts. Wh...

Further Thought:  “If we do not receive the religion of Christ by feeding upon the Word of God, we shall not be entitled to an entrance into the city of God. Having lived on earthly food, having educated our tastes to love worldly things, we would not be fitted for the heavenly courts; we could not appreciate the pure, heavenly current that circulates in heaven. The voices of the angels and the mu...

Listen to Ellen G. White’s vision of heaven found in  Early Writings , pp. 14-20 . What is most striking to you in this description? As God has shown me the travels of the Advent [14] people to the Holy City and the rich reward to be given those who wait the return of their Lord from the wedding, it may be my duty to give you a short sketch of what God has revealed to me. The dear saints have many...

“Come!” The invitation is offered to us again, today: “Come.” Read  the following passages and notice His invitation for you to come to Him:  Matt. 11:28-30 ,  Isa. 55:1-3 ,  John 6:44 . The Holy Spirit wants to draw you to Jesus today. Jesus invites you to come to Him, to abide in Him today, and every day, until He comes. When you respond and come to Him, when your heart is soft and your mind sur...

Follow the Lamb🐑 Have you ever been asked what you’re most looking forward to in eternity? If you ask a child, they might say, “Riding a tiger,” “Sliding down a giraffe’s neck,” or “Flying to different planets.” If you were to ask a teenager, they might say, “Not having to do any more schoolwork” or “Exploring heaven with my friends without getting hurt.” And if you were to ask a group of adults,...

The Bride👰🏻‍♀️ While exiled on the island of Patmos, the disciple John was given a vision of what it will be like when we are reunited with God for eternity. Read  Revelation 21:9-11 . What analogy was given, and why do you think it was used? The bride is beautiful, and on her wedding day, everyone wants to see her. A wedding day is a turning point of a new life together for the bride and groom,...

Finally, Face-to-Face We were made to be close to God ( Gen. 2:7 ). Ever since He created humankind, God has given everything to restore our broken relationship with Him ( John 3:16 ). He has placed eternity in our hearts, yet human beings cannot fathom what God has done from the beginning to the end ( Eccles. 3:11 ). We’re part of the great controversy raging around us--even in us--yet, too often...

Living Today When we look around, we see the world heaving and groaning, and the signs that Jesus told us about are playing out before our eyes. Wars and rumors of wars, nations rising against other nations, famines, pestilences, earthquakes, and persecution ( Matt. 24:6-11 ) are happening all around us and seem only to be intensifying as time rolls on. Yes, we live in serious times--times when we...

Sabbath Afternoon Read for This Week’s Study:   Psalm 80, 1 Thess. 4:17, Rev. 21:9-27, Isa. 25:8, Rev. 7:17, Rev. 21:4, John 6:44 Memory Text:  “Beloved, now we are children of God; and it has not yet been revealed what we shall be, but we know that when He is revealed, we shall be like Him, for we shall see Him as He is” ( 1 John 3:2 , NKJV). What does the future hold for you? What lies ahead? It...

Further Thought:  “Whatever the profession, no man has pure love to God unless he has unselfish love for his brother. But we can never come into possession of this spirit by  trying  to love others. What is needed is the love of Christ in the heart. When self is merged in Christ, love springs forth spontaneously.” --Ellen G. White,  Christ’s Object Lessons , p. 384 . “Those who are most actively e...