Bible Study - Sabbath School Podcast

From Deceiver to Prince As a young man who loved and feared God, Jacob nevertheless stooped to conspire with his mother, Rebekah, to deceive his father and gain his blessing. As a consequence, he started his adult life on the wrong path, having to flee or, perhaps, face an early death. Rebekah told Jacob to “flee thou to Laban . . . ; and tarry with him a few days, until thy brother’s fury turn aw...

Lot’s Bad Decisions When Abram left his homeland in response to God’s call, his nephew Lot chose to go with him on his pilgrimage. Genesis 13 records that God blessed Abram to the point that he “was very rich in cattle [the primary measure of wealth in that culture], in silver, and in gold” (Gen. 13:2). Lot also “had flocks, and herds, and tents” (Gen. 13:5). They both became so wealthy with their...

Abram, the Father of the Faithful God called Abram to leave his homeland and his kinfolk and go to a land that He would show him. Thus began the bloodline of the Messiah. Though details aren’t given, Abram had to leave the land of his birth and early years. Surely, it wasn’t an easy decision, and no doubt he gave up some earthly pleasure and conveniences to do it. Read Genesis 12:1–3. How were “al...

Noah Found Grace It is noteworthy to consider that those who are seeking heavenly trea- sure are frequently called by God to make major life alterations here on earth. Be prepared to face the same thing, if need be. Read Genesis 6:5–14. What radical changes came into Noah’s life as a result of obeying God? What principles can we find here for our- selves in a world that needs to be warned about im...

Read for This Week’s Study: Gen. 6:5–14, Heb. 11:8–13, 2 Cor. 4:18, Gen. 13:10–12, Gen. 32:22–31, Heb. 11:24–29. Memory Text: “ ‘For what will it profit a man if he gains the whole world, and loses his own soul? Or what will a man give in exchange for his soul?’ ” (Mark 8:36, 37, NKJV). Jesus gave us the world’s best investment strategy when He said: “ ‘Do not lay up for yourselves treasures on ea...

Further Thought: The three-step process of debt elimination is actu- ally found on one page of Ellen G. White’s writings. Emphasis has been added to highlight the points. “Be determined never to incur another debt. Deny yourself a thousand things rather than run in debt. This has been the curse of your life, getting into debt. Avoid it as you would the smallpox. “Make a solemn covenant with God th...

Term Limits and Borrowing Points Read Deuteronomy 15:1–5. What did the Lord require of His people as revealed in these verses? In harmony with other seven-year statutes (Exod. 21:2; Lev. 25:3, 4), not only were the slaves or servants and the land regulated but also the lenders. Because the lenders did not want to forgive any debts, the longest anyone could be in debt was seven years. Whatever else...

Surety and Get-Rich-Quick Schemes The Bible is very clear that God does not want His children to become responsible for the debt obligations of others. In the book of Proverbs, the Lord has warned us against surety—that is, cosigning or being guarantor for another person. Read Proverbs 6:1–5, Proverbs 17:18, and Proverbs 22:26. What is the message here? Surety usually occurs when a person with poo...

How to Get Out of Debt Read Proverbs 22:7. In what sense are we under bondage to the lender? What can be done to escape from this unfortunate phenomenon? If you are in debt, the following outline will help you begin a debt-­ elimination process. The plan is simple. It has a premise and three steps. The premise is a commitment to God to be faithful in returning His holy tithe to access His wisdom a...

Following Godly Counsel We are material beings, and we live in a material world, a world that, at times, can be very alluring. You’d have to be made out of steel and synthetic oil, not flesh and blood, not to feel, at times, the lure of mate- rial possessions and the desire for wealth. At one time or another, who hasn’t fantasized about being rich or winning the lottery? Though we all face it, and...

The Debt Problems Read Deuteronomy 28:1, 2, 12. What is God’s ideal for His children regarding debt? How can they attain this ideal? And though this context is very different from ours, what principles can we take away from it to apply to ourselves now? Studies show that there are three primary reasons that people get into financial difficulty. They are listed here in the order of greatest frequen...

Read for This Week’s Study: Deut. 28:1, 2, 12; Matt. 6:24; 1 John 2:15; Prov. 22:7; Prov. 6:1–5; Deut. 15:1–5. Memory Text: “The rich rules over the poor, and the borrower is servant to the lender” (Proverbs 22:7, NKJV). One definition of debt is “living today on what you expect to earn in the future.” Today debt seems to be a way of life, but it should not be the norm for Christians. The Bible di...

Further Thought: The heavenly record book of remembrance also notes the financial faithfulness of God’s family members. “The record- ing angel makes a faithful record of every offering dedicated to God and put into the treasury, and also of the final result of the means thus bestowed. The eye of God takes cognizance of every farthing devoted to His cause, and of the willingness or reluctance of th...

Special Projects: “Big Jar” Giving Research has shown that only about 9 percent of people’s assets are liquid and could be contributed as an offering on a moment’s notice. Cash, checking, savings, money market funds, and so on are generally considered liquid assets, at least for those possessing things like this. Most of our assets, about 91 percent, are “invested” in real estate, such as our home...

God Takes Note of Our Offerings Read Mark 12:41–44. Whether we are rich or not rich, what message can we take from this story? What’s the principle that this teaches us, and how can we apply it to our own worship experience? Jesus and His disciples were in the temple courtyard where the treasury chests were located, and He watched those who were bring- ing their gifts. He was close enough to see t...

Offerings and Worship The Bible does not give us an order of service for worship. But it appears that at least four things are present in worship services. In the New Testament this list includes study/preaching, prayer, music, and tithes and offerings. Three times each year, the men (and families) of Israel were all to appear before the Lord in Jerusalem. And “ ‘they shall not appear before the L...

What Portion for Offerings? Read Deuteronomy 16:17. Rather than a percentage, what criterion does God give as the basis for the amount of our offerings? Our offerings are an acknowledgment and expression of our gratitude to God for His abundant gifts of life, redemption, sustenance, and con- stant blessings of many kinds. So, as we noted in the passage above, the amount of our offerings is based o...

Motivation for Giving We love God because He first loved us. Our giving is in response to His amazing gift of Jesus to us. In fact, we are told, “The Lord does not need our offerings. We cannot enrich Him by our gifts. Says the psalmist: ‘All things come of Thee, and of Thine own have we given Thee.’ Yet God permits us to show our appreciation of His mercies by self-sacrificing efforts to extend t...

Read for This Week’s Study: 2 Cor. 9:6, 7; Deut. 16:17; 1 Chron. 16:29; Ps. 116:12–18; Mark 12:41–44; Mark 14:3–9. Memory Text: “What shall I render to the L ord for all His benefits toward me? I will take up the cup of salvation, and call upon the name of the L ord . I will pay my vows to the L ord now in the presence of all His people” (Psalm 116:12–14, NKJV). Besides tithing, there are offering...

Further Thought: Read Ellen G. White’s most comprehensive tithe document in volume 9 of Testimonies for the Church, pp. 245–252. Study Section III of Counsels on Stewardship, pp. 65–107. “If all the tithes of our people flowed into the treasury of the Lord as they should, such blessings would be received that gifts and offer- ings for sacred purposes would be multiplied tenfold, and thus the chann...

An Honest or Faithful Tithe Read 1 Corinthians 4:1, 2. As children of God and stewards of His blessings, what kind of people are we asked to be? So, what does it mean to be faithful with our tithe? This week we have reviewed several of the constituent elements of the tithe: 1. The amount—which is a tenth, or 10 percent, of our income or increase. 2. Taken to the storehouse—the place from which the...

Tithing on the Gross or the Net Income? We calculate our tithe on our “income” if we are paid by the hour or by a salary, and we pay on our “increase” or profit if we are self-employed and have our own business. In many countries, the government takes out taxes from the worker’s pay to cover the cost of services done for the people, such as security, roads and bridges, unemployment benefits, and s...

The Purpose of Tithing Read Leviticus 27:30 and Numbers 18:21, 24. What does God propose to do with the tithe? Because God is the owner of everything (Ps. 24:1), He obviously doesn’t need the money. But because the tithe is His, He tells us what to do with it, and that is to use His tithe for the support of the gospel ministry. And, therefore, the needs of the ministers are taken care of with God’...

Where Is the Storehouse? Read Malachi 3:10. What can we learn from this verse about where our tithe should go? Though specific directions are not given in the text, it is nevertheless evident that God’s people knew what He meant by the word “storehouse.” God does include in His directions, “ ‘that there may be food in My house’ ” (NKJV). His people understood that God’s house initially was the san...

Tithe Equals a Tenth Dictionaries define tithe as “a tenth part of something” or “10 percent.” This definition is likely taken from the Bible narrative. Tithe is simply returning 10 percent of our income, or increase, to God. We understand that all we have belongs to Him in the first place. The tithing legislation given to Israel at Mount Sinai points out that the tithe is holy and belongs to God...