Wednesday Bible Study | Evergreen Church

Nahum, like the earlier book of Jonah, focuses attention on Nineveh, the capital city of the Assyrian Empire.  But where Jonah records the city's reprieve, Nahum predicts destruction.  Prophesying in the mid-seventh century B.C., Nahum composes the most graphic poetry in the Bible.  Along the way, he verbally paints a stunningly comprehensive picture of Judah's God.

Micah writes to a nation addicted to luxury and careless of the civil rights of the common man.  The people were ruled by leaders who were proud, unscrupulous, and cruel.  Practical unbelief coexisted with the outward worship of Yahweh.  Lying politicians were supported by false prophets.  His visions targeted both Israel and Judah...and contemporary America!

More ridiculed than any other book in the Bible, Jonah is not simply an interesting fable about a man swallowed by a fish.  In fact, only three verses mention the fish.  Neither allegory nor parable, this literal account of a man's dissatisfaction with God rings true as a resoundingly modern story.  What do we do when God won't cooperate with our plans?

Briefest of the Minor Prophets, Obadiah doesn't speak primarily to Judah.  Instead, he speaks warnings to Edom as a demonstration that Yahweh knows no boundaries.  All nations stand accountable before Him.  This urgent message is meant for the nations of 2020 as well.

Prophesying to the Northern Kingdom in the eight-century B.C., Amos was contemporary with Hosea in Israel and Isaiah and Micah in Judah.  He was a laymen called by God to confront complacency and indulgence.  God's economy had become a society of haves and have nots hidden behind self-righteous religious activities.  To this unjust people, the God of Armies roars His Word like a lio...

Joel (“Yahweh is God”) is identified as the son of Pethuel. No other biographical information or historical context is made available. His message is, therefore, timeless as a warning of certain judgment on sin, a call to determined repentance, and a reminder of the character of the Almighty God.

Hosea was a man who wore his heart on his sleave; and his book teaches us that sin not only breaks God's law, it also breaks God's heart.  Forerunner to Jeremiah, the weeping prophet, Hosea prophesied when memories of Elijah and Elisha were still fresh in the land.  Speaking primarily to Israel, he frames false religion as adultery and hold out hope for restoration to those who turn to G...

It is easy to waste life on small purposes- to blunder through our days without direction, busy yet getting nowhere.  A person without purpose makes no progress in life, even when circumstances seem favorable.  Authentic believers, however, answer a call to noble living, adopting the high standard of godliness in order to glorify Christ Jesus.

Paul's discussion of the final doom of the man of lawlessness leads him naturally to the consideration of the destiny of Christian believers.  His readers were not in that crowd discussed in the earlier verses of this chapter.  His pastoral affection for his people comes through loud and clear in these verses as he speaks intimately to his family of faith. 

God never gives specific dates nor times for the return of Christ, but He does allow us to look in to the future and see a panoramic view of what lies ahead.  Paul, inspired by the Spirit, offers a glimpse of God's victory and evil's doom, inspiring courage, perseverance, and hope.  The great value of the doctrine of the Second Coming is that it provides a guarantee that history is not r...

In his first letter to this church, Paul expressed unrestrained enthusiasm for church life in Thessalonica.  A second letter follows quickly after the first one because a problem surfaces regarding daily work ethic of some in light of the coming return of Jesus.  Paul begins this new letter with a reminder of his pride in them and his specific prayers offered for them.

Evergreen, like every church, is a complex community including a great variety of personalities. There are leaders and followers, those weak in faith and those strong, optimists and pessimists, the cynical and the gullible. Yet, encouraged by our common hope in the return of Jesus, Evergreen believers breathe an atmosphere of love and service together.

The rapture always stirs debate about sequences and events, but Christ’s return is as certain as God Himself. Jesus will come. He will rule. He will be glorified. Knowing this produces two things in the believer: obedience and courage. C.S. Lewis remarked, “It is since Christians have largely ceased to think of the other world that they have become so ineffective in this.” The second coming of Jes...

Too often today, Christian faith is held as a purely intellectual pursuit. We believe certain things and remain content to give mental assent to the idea of being a disciple without ever practicing the tangible life of a Jesus-follower. Paul will not allow that as a viable option. The life of Christ in us is practical, visible, and influential by action and not just word.

In the next two chapters, Paul appeals to two related motivations for believers to live up to the high ethical standards of God’s Kingdom. The first motivation is internal—to please God. The second is external—to live in a way that earns the respect of those outside the gospel. These compelling motives strengthen our determination in the pursuit of Christlikeness.

In the first chapter, Paul describes what a great church looks like. Now, he outlines what the relationships within that church look like—godly pastors and devout believers sharing life and living to please the Father. Jesus says that the world will identify us by our deep, abiding love for one another in the church. Our joint participation in the Body of Christ is a great gift.

How do you build a great church? How do you recognize a great church? What traits characterize a great church? Paul knew the answers to these questions and he often pointed to the church at Thessalonica as an example of a great church. Such a church is not defined by size or programming. Rather, a great church demonstrates a faithfulness that pleases God.

Peter is writing to a church in the middle of suffering persecution for their faith.  The persecution is a current reality for them.  Peter points them to the ultimate reality in their hope and faith in the Lord Jesus.  It is the nature of that reality and the concept of submission which Peter uses to help the believers deal with their current situation.

Often overlooked, the closing verses of this letter provide delicious insight into the life of the New Testament Church in general, and the Corinthian church in particular.  After 15 chapters of instruction for congregational problems, Paul turns to the future with the full expectation that this church will advance the Kingdom of Christ effectively in the years ahead.   He calls the...

Very early, cynical questions were asked in Corinth about bodily resurrection.  Some asked, "How are the dead raised?  With what type of body will they come?" (v. 35)  Paul answers both of these questions.  The omnipotent power of God is able to give you a body consistent  with the promise of the gospel and suitable for life in an eternal world.

The resurrection of Jesus changes the course of history.

As Paul attempts to strike a death blow to the rivalries and sectarian spirit in the Corinthian church, he uses the human body to illustrate God's ideal for each local expression of the Body of Christ...each part fulfilling an assigned role as designed, each member operating in love toward the rest. 

Paul knows that self-sacrificing love (agape) can never be adequately analyzed or explained.  It can only be described and set out on display.  This is the vital ingredient to the Christian life, to a healthy church, and to God-honoring use of spiritual gifts.  Love is the better way.

The scope of Paul's vision in this chapter is not the inner meaning of worship in the experience of the individual, but rather what worship should be and accomplish in the life of the Body in its public assembly. (Verse 1 states his overarching theme and verse 40 summarizes the entire chapter.)

"Tongues" is a major source of confusion among Christians today.  Is it necessary for salvation?  Does it confirm the presence of the Holy Spirit?  How should it be practiced in the church?  Am I missing something I need?