Bible Study - Sabbath School Podcast

Distractions and Temptations Read  about Samson’s temptations in  Judges 14  and  Judges 16:1 ,  4 ,  16 ,  17 . Although called by God for a specific purpose, Samson served God while giving in to temptation. What does the outcome of his life teach us? The great controversy is real, and we are all involved in it. The cosmic battle that began in heaven is now being played out in each of our own liv...

Sabbath Afternoon Read for This Week’s Study: Judges 14; Mark 9:42-48; Rom. 3:20; Matt. 5:17-18; Romans 3:28; Matt. 7:24-29 Memory Text: “I will never forget Your precepts, for by them You have given me life. I am Yours, save me; for I have sought Your precepts” (Psalm 119:93-94, NKJV). Without a doubt, sin is the greatest obstructor to a close relationship with God. Not only does sin separate us...

Further Thought:  We are justified (pardoned and set right with God) by faith ( Rom. 5:1 ). We are then also sanctified (given power to be like Jesus) by faith ( Acts 26:18 ). When we invite Jesus into our lives, we also become God’s children by faith ( John 1:12 ). We live by faith in the Son of God ( Gal. 2:20 ). “Nothing is apparently more helpless, yet really more invincible, than the soul tha...

The Faith of Jesus As this world comes to a close, part of the three angels’ messages describes God’s people keeping the commandments of God and having the faith of Jesus. Read  Revelation 14:12 . What does “the faith of Jesus” mean? If you study how Seventh-day Adventists have understood justification by faith, you’ll see that in the 1890s, an understanding of the faith of Jesus and the three ang...

Examples of Faith Spend some time today studying  Hebrews 11 , the great faith chapter. Read it aloud first, without stopping. Then read it a second time, and write down your thoughts to the following questions: Reread verse 1. What do you hope for today that you cannot yet see? (Think of immediate needs and eternal dreams.) What role does faith play in your personal testimony and in your conversi...

Faith Is Not a Feeling Jesus said that if you have faith as small as a mustard seed, you’ll move mountains ( Matt. 17:20 ). If you’ve ever seen a mustard seed, you know how tiny it is. Yet having faith this small can effect such huge change. Faith must, therefore, be very important and must also be powerful and strong enough to do something superhuman. However, just as a mustard seed can grow into...

Jesus Sees Our Faith Compare  how Jesus describes His disciples’ faith in  Mark 4:40  with the faith of the woman in  Matthew 15:21-28 . Just because we’re following Jesus doesn’t automatically mean our faith is strong. In fact, some people claimed to believe, but Jesus discerned what was really in their hearts ( John 2:23-25 ). Read  Luke 7:1-10 . What do we learn about faith from this account? I...

Just Give Me a Sign! Maybe you’ve heard it said, “If I could just see the Red Sea parted, or manna on the ground, or Jesus heal a blind man, I’d believe.” Or perhaps you have had those same kinds of thoughts yourself. On the other hand, why should it be easier for us now to have faith than it was for those in ancient Bible times? The Israelites didn’t own a whole Bible, nor did they have such a lo...

Sabbath Afternoon Read for This Week’s Study:   Mark 8:11-12; Matt. 15:21-28; Luke 7:1-10; Eph. 2:8; Hebrews 11; Rev. 14:12 Memory Text:  “Faith shows the reality of what we hope for; it is the evidence of things we cannot see” ( Hebrews 11:1 , NLT). Someone once said, “Faith is like WiFi. It’s invisible, but it has the power to connect you to what you need.” No doubt: without faith, there would b...

Further Thought:  “If we thought and talked more of Jesus, and less of self, we should have far more of His presence.” --Ellen G. White,  Steps to Christ , p. 102 . “If we take counsel with our doubts and fears, or try to solve everything that we cannot see clearly, before we have faith, perplexities will only increase and deepen. But if we come to God, feeling helpless and dependent, as we really...

Other Questions About Prayer Why pray when God already knows?  Why should we pray when God is all-knowing? Ellen G. White explains it like this: “Not that it is necessary in order to make known to God what we are, but in order to enable us to receive Him. Prayer does not bring God down to us, but brings us up to Him.” -- Steps to Christ , p. 93 . Indeed, God knows our desires and our needs, and He...

Praise, Confession, Requests, Thanksgiving In the same way that Jesus taught us how to pray in  Matthew 6:5-15 , we can follow this simple model when we come to God privately, with our families, or as a church, remembering that prayer is speaking to God as a friend. Too often our prayers are full of requests when Jesus has taught us to pray for so much more! Read  Daniel’s prayer in  Daniel 9:4-19...

Jesus Teaches Us How to Pray In the time of Jesus, prayers that were long and carefully crafted like a performance--using complex words and often memorized--were highly esteemed. Jesus had nothing good to say about these kinds of prayers (see  Matt. 6:5-8 ). He revealed them to be what they were: ostentatious shows of “piety.” The disciples saw Jesus pray, and they knew that prayer was a vital par...

When Prayers Seem Unanswered Perhaps  you’ve prayed about something for a long time, maybe even years, and it feels as if God hasn’t heard your prayers. The Bible tells us to “ask, and it shall be given you” ( Matt. 7:7 ), “if we ask anything according to His will” ( 1 John 5:14 , NKJV). What is your understanding of these promises? Hannah is an example of a devoted woman who prayed for something...

Elijah--Praying in Crisis Faithful Elijah lived in evil times, with King Ahab doing more “to provoke the LORD God of Israel to anger than all the kings of Israel who were before him” ( 1 Kings 16:33 , NKJV). By far the most dramatic moments in Elijah’s life came with the confrontation at Mount Carmel (see  1 Kings 18 ). At the climax of this incredible story, Ahab and his kingdom saw with their ow...

Sabbath Afternoon Read for This Week’s Study:   1 Kings 19:1-18; Matt. 6:5-8; Luke 11:2-4. Matt. 6:5-15; Dan. 9:4-19; Rom. 8:26-27 Memory Text:  “Trust in Him at all times, you people; pour out your heart before Him; God is a refuge for us” ( Psalm 62:8 , NKJV). What is your prayer life like? How often do you pray? How fervently? How expectantly? Do you pray daily or only in emergencies? Are your...

Further Thought:  Ultimately, we should pray because we love God so much, and we just can’t help sharing everything in our lives with Him: our joys and life’s “wins,” our burdens and worries, our requests and daily needs. “We may keep so near to God that in every unexpected trial our thoughts will turn to Him as naturally as the flower turns to the sun. Keep your wants, your joys, your sorrows, yo...

Moses Intercedes for a Nation Read  Exodus 32:31-32 . What does this teach us about Moses and prayer? Moses boldly interceded for God’s people time and time again. Moses turned to God when the people were thirsty ( Exod. 15:25 ;  Exod. 17:2-6 ), when the people were hungry ( Num. 11:21-22 ), and in sheer desperation ( Num. 11:11-15 ). When the Israelites built the golden calf immediately after God...

Moses, Godly Leader Although Enoch clearly had a very close relationship with God, we have more insight into Moses’ relationship with God and can even read numerous accounts of Moses’ conversations with Him. As we journey with Moses through the ups and downs of this humble leader’s life, we see time and time again that the single most important part of his life and the secret to his success as a g...

Enoch Walked and Talked Read  Genesis 5:22-24 . What, exactly, do we know about Enoch? The Bible doesn’t share a lot about Enoch’s life, but it does tell us that he walked with God for 300 years until God took him to heaven. How beautiful that a person’s consistent devotion to God is what defines their life! One thing we know is that Enoch must have been “continuing steadfastly in prayer” ( Rom. 1...

The Posture of Prayer When something goes wrong in our lives, most of us call a close friend to talk about it. When we have good news, we find someone to share it with. We can do the same with God. “Prayer is the opening of the heart to God as to a friend.” --Ellen G. White,  Steps to Christ , p. 93 . Prayer not only keeps us connected to God but tells the devil whose we are. When we kneel to pray...

Faithful Daniel Daniel is one of the great heroes of the Bible. We know the first story, too (see  Daniel 1 ): “Daniel purposed in his heart that he would not defile himself with the portion of the king’s delicacies” ( Dan. 1:8 , NKJV). Also, to Daniel and his three friends, “God gave them knowledge and skill in all literature and wisdom; and Daniel had understanding in all visions and dreams” ( D...

Sabbath Afternoon Read for This Week’s Study:   Dan. 2:20-23; Dan. 6:10-11; Acts 20:36; Gen. 5:22-24; Exod. 33:15-23; Exod. 32:31-32 Memory Text:  “I love the LORD, because He has heard my voice and my supplications. Because He has inclined His ear to me, therefore I will call upon Him as long as I live” ( Psalm 116:1-2 , NKJV). Imagine if you rarely spoke to your best friend or your spouse. Very...

Further Thought:  The purpose of Bible study is to know God and to grow in your relationship with Him, for this is what life eternal is--to be forever with the God we love ( John 5:39 ,  John 17:3 ). Part of any relationship is mutual engagement. We read in  Revelation 3:20  that Jesus seeks to have this with us, yet we must realize that, as created beings, we can always learn more about our Creat...

’Tis So Sweet! Think about your favorite dessert. Is it good for your health? Perhaps you use honey as a sweetener, or you may even use Manuka honey for its purported medicinal benefits. If you’ve ever tried honeycomb, you’ll know how sweet the soft texture is as it melts onto your tongue. In  Psalm 119:103-104 , the psalmist describes the Bible as a honeycomb--a metaphor for delight: “How sweet a...