Bible Study - Sabbath School Podcast

Further Study: Read Ellen G. White, “In the Days of Queen Esther,” pp. 598–606, in Prophets and Kings. “Has not God said He would give the Holy Spirit to them that ask Him? And is not this Spirit a real, true actual guide? Some men seem afraid to take God at His word, as though it would be presumption in them. They pray for the Lord to teach us and yet are afraid to credit the pledged word of God...

Still Faithful When God Cannot Be Seen To think that no one cares about what is happening to us is very unpleasant. But to think that God does not know or care about us can be most distressing. To the Judaeans exiled in Babylon, God did not seem to care much about their situation. They were still exiled, still feeling abandoned by God because of their sin. But Isaiah speaks words of comfort to the...

To Carry All Our Worry There is a plaque that some people have in their homes that reads “Why pray when you can worry?” It makes us laugh because we know how often we worry rather than come to God and give Him our con- cerns. Someone once said that when our life becomes all tied up, we should give it to God and let Him untie the knots. How God must long to do this for us. Yet, amazingly, we manage...

The Power of the Resurrection The Resurrection addresses the problem of human powerlessness. When we think about the life, death, and resurrection of Jesus, we often think about how the death of Jesus was the event that made us legally right with God. And that, of course, is true. However, the Resurrection adds a specific dimension to salvation. The resurrection of Jesus is meaningful not just bec...

In the Name of Jesus “ ‘If you ask anything in My name, I will do it’ ” (John 14:14, NKJV). Jesus was not going to be with the disciples much longer. The One who had been their support and encouragement was going to heaven, and the disciples were beginning to feel confused and powerless. But though the disciples would not be able to see Him physically any lon- ger, Jesus gave them a remarkable pro...

Our Father’s Extravagance “If God really loved me, He would certainly do _________________ for me!” I wonder how many times that thought has flickered through our minds. We look at our circumstances and then begin to wonder whether God really loves us, because if He really did, things would be different. There are two rationales that often lead us to doubt God’s goodness. First, when we have a bur...

Read for This Week’s Study: Rom. 8:28–39, John 14:1–14, Eph. 1:18–23, Isa. 40:27–31. Memory Text: “By faith he forsook Egypt, not fearing the wrath of the king; for he endured as seeing Him who is invisible” (Hebrews 11:27, NKJV). The definition of faith in the book of Hebrews is always challeng- ing. “Now faith is confidence in what we hope for and assurance about what we do not see” (Heb. 11:1,...

Further Thought: Read Ellen G. White, “The School of the Hereafter,” pp. 301–309, in Education; “Help in Daily Living,” pp. 470, 471, in The Ministry of Healing. “Into the experience of all there come times of keen disappointment and utter discouragement—days when sorrow is the portion, and it is hard to believe that God is still the kind benefactor of His earthborn children; days when troubles ha...

Our Father’s Discipline Read Hebrews 12:5–13. What’s the message to us here, and how does it fit in with what we have been studying this quarter? In Hebrews 12:5–13, Paul describes trials in the context of discipline. In the New International Version Bible translation of this passage, vari- ous forms of the word “discipline” appear ten times. In the Greek world, this word was the most basic word f...

Our Father’s Plans for Us Everyone is looking for hope. But where is it found? For some people, hope is found in the smile of a friend. For others, hope grows out of financial security or a stable marriage. Where do you normally look for hope and courage? In the book of Jeremiah, the prophet is writing to people who had lost hope in their exile. “By the rivers of Babylon we sat and wept when we re...

Our Father’s Presence “ ‘For I am the L ord your God who takes hold of your right hand and says to you, Do not fear; I will help you’ ” (Isa. 41:13, NIV). Someone once said, “When God seems far away, who is the one who has moved?” When problems strike, we presume that God has deserted us. The truth is that He hasn’t gone anywhere. God’s presence seemed very far away to the Jews in exile. Yet, thro...

Who Our Father Is Oswald Chambers writes, “Have you been asking God what He is going to do? He will never tell you. God does not tell you what He is going to do; He reveals to you Who He is.”—My Utmost for His Highest (Uhrichsville, OH: Barbour & Company, Inc., 1963), January 2. What do you think Chambers means by this idea? As we know, the book of Job begins with great personal tragedy for Jo...

The Big Picture When we are hurting, it is very easy to presume that what hap- pens to us is the only thing that matters. But there is a slightly larger picture than just “me” (see Rev. 12:7, Rom. 8:22). Read Habakkuk 1:1–4. What did Habakkuk face? You might expect that God would say something like, “That’s really terrible, Habakkuk; let Me come and help you immediately.” But God’s answer is the o...

Read for This Week’s Study: Hab. 1:1–4, Job 38–41, Isa. 41:8–14, Jer. 29:1–10, Heb. 12:1–13. Memory Text: “Now hope does not disappoint, because the love of God has been poured out in our hearts by the Holy Spirit who was given to us” (Romans 5:5, NKJV). When in church surrounded by smiling people, how easy it is to talk and sing about hope. But when we find ourselves within the crucible, hope doe...

Further Thought: Read Ellen G. White, “The Night of Wrestling,” pp. 195–203, in Patriarchs and Prophets; “Consecration,” pp. 43–48, in Steps to Christ. “This will, that forms so important a factor in the character of man, was at the Fall given into the control of Satan; and he has ever since been working in man to will and to do of his own pleasure, but to the utter ruin and misery of man.”—Ellen...

The Need to Persevere Read the story of Jacob wrestling with God (Genesis 32). What does this story say to us about perseverance, even amid great discourage- ment? (Keep the whole context of Jacob’s situation in mind before you answer.) We can know what is right and exercise our wills to do the right thing; but when we are under pressure, it can be very difficult to keep holding on to God and His...

Radical Commitment “If your right eye causes you to stumble, gouge it out and throw it away. It is better for you to lose one part of your body than for your whole body to be thrown into hell” (Matt. 5:29, NIV). Dwell on the words of Jesus in the above text. Would you call them radical? If so, why? Radical action is necessary not because God has made the Christian life difficult, but because we an...

The Disciplined Will One of the greatest enemies of our wills is our own feelings. We are increasingly living in a culture bombarded with pictures and music that can appeal directly to our senses, triggering our emotions—anger, fear, or lust—without our realizing it. How often do we think such things as What do I feel like eating for supper? What do I feel like doing today? Do I feel good about bu...

The Divine-Human Combination What is your greatest accomplishment ever? Chances are, whatever you achieved did not happen simply by rolling out of bed in the morn- ing. If we want to achieve something worthwhile in this life, it takes time and effort. Our discipleship to Christ is no different. Read Colossians 1:28, 29. Though Paul talks about God working in him, in what ways does he show the huma...

The Spirit of Truth Have you ever prayed “Please, God, make me good!” but little seems to change? How is it possible that we can pray for God’s great trans- forming power to work within us, but our lives seem to remain the same? We know that God has unlimited supernatural resources that He so eagerly and freely offers us. We really want to take advantage of it all, and yet, our lives don’t seem to...

Read for This Week’s Study: John 16:5–15; Col. 1:28, 29; 1 Pet. 1:13; Matt. 5:29; Genesis 32. Memory Text: “To this end I strenuously contend, struggling with all the energy Christ so powerfully works in me” (Colossians 1:29, NIV). A man and woman sat together on a talk show. Both had expe- rienced the murder of a child. The woman’s son had been murdered 20 years before, and her anger and bitterne...

Further Thought: Read Ellen G. White, “The Test of Faith,” pp. 145–155, in Patriarchs and Prophets; “Praise Ye the Lord,” pp. 315–319, in Testimonies for the Church, vol. 5. “God has always tried His people in the furnace of affliction. It is in the heat of the furnace that the dross is separated from the true gold of the Christian character. Jesus watches the test; He knows what is needed to puri...

Extreme Heat So far this quarter, we have considered many examples of the cru- cibles that God uses to bring purity and Christlikeness to our lives. However, some people may view these examples and conclude that God is a severe and demanding taskmaster. Sure, some may say, “We know that God wants something good for us, but these examples don’t reveal much care and love. Instead, God looks more lik...

Surviving Through Hope “We were under great pressure, far beyond our ability to endure, so that we despaired of life itself. Indeed, we felt we had received the sentence of death. But this happened that we might not rely on ourselves but on God, who raises the dead” (2 Cor. 1:8, 9, NIV). As God’s chosen apostle, Paul endured more than most people. Yet, Paul was not crushed. Rather, he grew in his...

Surviving Through Worship Read Job 1:6–2:10. What caused Job’s suffering? There is something astonishing here. The angels come to see God, and Satan comes with them. God asks Satan where he has been, and Satan replies that he has been “ ‘roaming throughout the earth, going back and forth on it’ ” (Job 1:7, NIV). Then God poses this question: “ ‘Have you considered my servant Job?’ ” (Job 1:8, NIV)...