Bible Study - Sabbath School Podcast

Image of the Invisible God When we look in the mirror or at a photograph, we see an image of ourselves, but it is a flat, two-dimensional portrayal. In some respects, a sculpture gives a clearer idea yet still falls far short of the living, breathing, animated reality. The biblical concept of image, while sometimes referring to these lesser representations, suggests something broader still. Read ...

Sabbath Afternoon Read for This Week's Study:   Gen. 1:26-27; Col. 1:13-19; John 1:1-3; Eph. 1:22; 1 Cor. 12:12-27; 1 Cor. 4:9; Rom. 6:3-4 Memory Text:  "He [Christ] is the image of the invisible God, the firstborn over all creation. For by Him all things were created that are in heaven and that are on earth, visible and invisible, whether thrones or dominions or principalities or powers....

Further Thought:   "Those only who are constantly receiving fresh supplies of grace, will have power proportionate to their daily need and their ability to use that power. Instead of looking forward to some future time when, through a special endowment of spiritual power, they will receive a miraculous fitting up for soul winning, they are yielding themselves daily to God, that He may make th...

Keys for Contentment Read  Philippians 4:10-13 ,  19 . What keys does Paul reveal for a contented, happy life? When extreme circumstances strike (hunger, illness, injury, loss), one begins to reflect on the things that really count and to dwell on the blessings that are usually taken for granted. When we are "brought low" ( Phil. 4:12 , ESV), "in need" (NIV), or left with &quot...

Think on These Things ... The peace that surpasses understanding will also "guard your hearts and minds through Christ Jesus" ( Phil. 4:7 , NKJV). Our inner life needs protection. Interestingly,  Philippians 4:7  uses a military metaphor in connection with God's peace. The Greek verb  (phroureō)  is used to describe a garrison of soldiers guarding a city against invasion ( 2 Cor. 11:...

Rejoice in the Lord--Always Read  Philippians 4:4-7 . How are we to experience "the peace of God"? After touching on, again, the need for unity ( Phil. 4:1-3 ), Paul moves on to another theme: rejoicing in the Lord ( Phil. 4:4-7 ). How many times have you been stressed over things that ultimately melted effortlessly away as quickly as they appeared? For good reason, Jesus repeatedly emph...

"Stand Fast in the Lord" Read  Philippians 3:20-21 . How does Paul vividly describe what Christian "citizenship" looks like? Unlike the enemies of the cross, who "set their mind on earthly things" and have no greater god than their bellies ( Phil. 3:19 ), Christian citizenship is in heaven, and our ruler is Jesus Christ Himself. To underscore the point, Paul highlight...

Role Models All of us have, at one time or another, found people we admire and want to emulate. For children, it's especially important that they have good role models. Ideally, this would be their father and mother. As they grow, they will find other role models, perhaps connected with their chosen career or even in biographies they have read. They can also learn how various Bible characters...

Sabbath Afternoon Read for This Week's Study:   Phil. 3:17-4:23, 1 Cor. 15:42-44, John 14:27, Ps. 119:165, Job 1:21, 1 Tim. 6:7 Memory Text:  "Be anxious for nothing, but in everything by prayer and supplication, with thanksgiving, let your requests be made known to God" ( Philippians 4:6 , NKJV). This week's lesson concludes our study of Philippians, and it is packed with valuab...

Further Thought:  "He who would build up a strong, symmetrical character, he who would be a well-balanced Christian, must give all and do all for Christ; for the Redeemer will not accept divided service. Daily he must learn the meaning of self-surrender. He must study the word of God, learning its meaning and obeying its precepts. Thus he may reach the standard of Christian excellence. Day by...

Just One Thing--Knowing Christ Read  Philippians 3:10-16 . What are some of the main points Paul makes in this passage? Surely there is nothing more important than knowing Christ, which guarantees in the end that He will know us and acknowledge us before the Father (see  Matt. 7:21-23 ;  Matt. 10:32-33 ). How do we know Him? Through His Written Word--reading it and living it. We cannot know Him fa...

The Faith of Christ Paul's main point must not be missed. There was a wonderful exchange that he experienced on the Damascus road, trading his old, law-based life for the presence of Christ Himself--"that I may gain Christ and be found in Him" ( Phil. 3:8-9 , NKJV). To be found "in Him," that is, in Christ, is an interesting expression. Read  Ephesians 1:4 ,  2 Corinthians...

The Things That Matter As yesterday's study pointed out, the things that previously made Paul proud were actually hindrances to faith because they blinded him to his need of Christ. Paul uses the language of commerce, gain and loss, to describe his spiritual ledger prior to faith. Although we don't like to think about it much, every human being has a "spiritual ledger." Previousl...

Paul's "Past Life" It is a common experience for Christian converts to think of their lives in terms of before they accepted Jesus and after, just as Paul does in Philippians 3. Nevertheless, rightly or wrongly, we sometimes speak of those who are not Christians as being "good people," and, at least according to the world's standards, many indeed are. In contrast, compa...

Rejoicing in the Lord Read  Philippians 3:1-3 . What positive and negative notes does Paul sound here, and how are they related? How does he describe believers? Paul begins on a very positive note and almost sounds as though he is wrapping up his letter. But he's not done. He returns to one of the main themes of this epistle: rejoicing in the Lord. And he will give a number of reasons for that...

Sabbath Afternoon Read for This Week's Study:   Phil. 3:1-16; Rom. 2:25-29; John 9:1-39; Eph. 1:4, 10; 1 Cor. 9:24-27 Memory Text:  "That I may know Him and the power of His resurrection, and the fellowship of His sufferings, being conformed to His death, if, by any means, I may attain to the resurrection from the dead" ( Philippians 3:10-11 , NKJV). There's something about us th...

Further Thought:  "The one who stands nearest to Christ will be he who on earth has drunk most deeply of the spirit of His self-sacrificing love,--love that 'vaunteth not itself, is not puffed up, ... seeketh not her own, is not easily provoked, thinketh no evil' ( 1 Corinthians 13:4-5 ),--love that moves the disciple, as it moved our Lord, to give all, to live and labor and sacrifice...

"Hold Such Men in Esteem" Read  Philippians 2:25-30 . How does Paul describe Epaphroditus? What specific attitudes and actions of this Christian worker reveal his character? Epaphroditus is mentioned only in this letter, but we learn quite a bit about him from the few brief mentions that appear. Judging from his name (which refers to the cult of Aphrodite), he was converted from a pagan...

Proven Character Timothy's role as a co-sender of this epistle has already been mentioned ( Phil. 1:1 ). Now Paul begins to detail how valuable Timothy is as one of his coworkers. He is described as an evangelist ( 2 Tim. 4:5 ) whom Paul had sent to Macedonia ( 1 Thess. 3:2 ; compare  Acts 18:5 ,  Acts 19:22 ) and, on several occasions, to Corinth ( 1 Cor. 4:17 ,  1 Cor. 16:10 ). Previously he...

A Living Sacrifice Read  Philippians 2:17 ;  2 Timothy 4:6 ;  Romans 12:1-2 ; and  1 Corinthians 11:1 . What is Paul saying in these passages? Paul has already expressed a surprisingly ambivalent view toward whether he lives or dies in service to Christ ( Phil. 1:20-23 ). Now he suggests the very real possibility of "being poured out as a drink offering" ( Phil. 2:17 , NKJV). This imager...

Light in a Dark World In  Philippians 2:14 , Paul urges the Philippians to "do all things without complaining and disputing" (NKJV). The challenges to church unity are so serious that it cannot be maintained without significant effort on our part. Unity within the church is a byproduct of our union with Christ and obedience to His Word. And it's vital to our witness, as Paul proceeds to point out,...

Happy Birthday, City of São Paulo ୧⍤⃝💐🥳🎉🎂 We Work Out What God Works In Having just presented Jesus as the perfect example of humility and obedience to God's will, Paul now turns to the Philippians themselves. He affirms their obedience to the Lord after they received the gospel message (see  Acts 16:13-15 ,  32 ,  33 ) and urges them to continue in that obedience. Having presented the example...

Sabbath Afternoon Read for This Week's Study:   Phil. 2:12-30; Rom. 3:23-24; Rom. 5:8; 2 Tim. 4:6; 1 Cor. 4:17; 2 Tim. 4:21, 13; Luke 7:2 Memory Text:  "Do all things without complaining and disputing, that you may become blameless and harmless, children of God without fault in the midst of a crooked and perverse generation, among whom you shine as lights in the world" ( Philippians 2:14-15 , NKJV...

Further Thought:  "All the paternal love which has come down from generation to generation through the channel of human hearts, all the springs of tenderness which have opened in the souls of men, are but as a tiny rill to the boundless ocean when compared with the infinite, exhaustless love of God. Tongue cannot utter it; pen cannot portray it. You may meditate upon it every day of your life...

The Mystery of Godliness A popular verse in the Bible is  1 Corinthians 8:2 : "If anyone thinks that he knows anything, he knows nothing yet as he ought to know"  (NKJV) . There is no subject about which we know everything. We can always learn something more about anything. How much more true is that of eternal realities connected with the Godhead and the Incarnation? Paul frequently ref...