Living as God's People

                                                               Sunday School Lesson
                                                                   October 30,2011

Lesson Scripture
Matthew 5:1-12


Introduction:

The Kingdom Message:Jesus climbed a mountain in Galilee and delievered a powerful sermon.He set out to accomplish several things in this message,present a standard of living for his disiciples and all believers,contrast God's kingdom and the world,expose the differences in Jesus' ministry and the legalistic teaching of the pharisees, and give examples of how Old Testiment teaching fits in with the new beliefs Jesus ushered in. Jesus laid out eight characteristics of living a life filled with deep down hope and joy within,not just happiness, a temporary external circumstance.

God Blesses Kingdom Conduct

Matthew 5:1-9KJV

 ¹And seeing the multitudes, he went up into a mountain: and when he was set, his disciples came unto him:

   ²And he opened his mouth, and taught them, saying,
   ³Blessed are the poor in spirit: for theirs is the kingdom of heaven.
   ⁴Blessed are they that mourn: for they shall be comforted.
   ⁵Blessed are the meek: for they shall inherit the earth.
   ⁶Blessed are they which do hunger and thirst after righteousness: for they shall be filled.
   ⁷Blessed are the merciful: for they shall obtain mercy.
   ⁸Blessed are the pure in heart: for they shall see God.
   ⁹Blessed are the peacemakers: for they shall be called the children of God.

footnotes:

Characterististics of Kingdom Living; Fortunate are those who choose to follow closely after Christ,humbly recognizing their need for Him.As a result they will dwell with God's people on earth and also in heaven.Mourners, those who mourn a loss or mourn over sin or persecution and suffering,all will receive God's comfort.Those who see no need to throw their weight around(the meek),but rely on God to throw his weight around, will inherit a high place in God's kingdom.Those who desire an obedient,trusting relationship with God(Hunger for righteousness) will ultimately be satisfied with a sin free existence in heaven.Those drenched in God's love have the Holy Spirit working in them and so they are able to extend mercy and love to others,even their enemies. Jesus forgiving His enemies on the cross provides a perfect example of mercy in action.Those who have a pure heart,love God, and have no worldly loyalty eventually will see God's face,in heaven(1john 3:2). God is the ultimate peacemaker.Once peace with God is established, those who follow after Him will also desire to maintain and traffic in peace.

God Rewards Kingdom Conduct

Matthew 5:10-12KJV

¹⁰Blessed are they which are persecuted for righteousness' sake: for theirs is the kingdom of heaven.

   ¹¹Blessed are ye, when men shall revile you, and persecute you, and shall say all manner of evil against you falsely, for my sake.
   ¹²Rejoice, and be exceeding glad: for great is your reward in heaven: for so persecuted they the prophets which were before you.

footnotes:
Kingdom Persecution; Jesus warned that persecution is coming.People who follow him will "go through" adversity,even be killed. But for those in the "suffering for Jesus' sake" crowd, nothing will compare to the reward they receive in heaven(Romans 8:18).Yet knowing the great hardship to come,Jesus encourages us to realize that we are devinely blessed, even when we are insulted, persecuted, and falsely accused of all manner of evil deeds solely because we follow Him.Rejoice and be glad.Because it brings great heavenly reward and because it identifies Christ followers with the godly line of persecuted prophets who faithfully foretold the coming of the messiah.

TRUE LOVE

                                                                    Sunday School Lesson
                                                                        October 23,2011

Lesson Focus:
True Love is a gift from God.
Lesson Scripture:
Song of Solomon 4:8-5:1


Introduction:

There have been two interpretations of the song of Solomon.One is that it is a true story of courtship and marriage of Solomon and one of his wives,and it serves to offer guidance to couples.Another is that it's an allegory for the believer's groom, Jesus Christ,and His bride,the church.Either way,the book conveys intense,serious love between two parties.

  

Love's Delight
Song of Solomon 4:8-10 KJV

 ⁸Come with me from Lebanon, my spouse, with me from Lebanon: look from the top of Amana, from the top of Shenir and Hermon, from the lions' dens, from the mountains of the leopards.
   ⁹Thou hast ravished my heart, my sister, my spouse; thou hast ravished my heart with one of thine eyes, with one chain of thy neck.
 ¹⁰How fair is thy love, my sister, my spouse! how much better is thy love than wine! and the smell of thine ointments than all spices!

footnotes:

In an age when divorce has become common and marriage is under fire,it's easy to become skeptical about the institution and it's importance.But you must establish the relationship.First the groom invites the bride to "come away with me".He desires a relationship with her and woos her with compliments.God desires a relationship with His creation and sent his Son Jesus to die and take care of the sin problem that caused the division.Once we invite Christ in and accept His death for our sins,God fills believers with a desire to love him and one another.Solomon calls his bride away from her hometown,and her family to be with him and to cling to him,to place her security in no one else but him.God called us out of the darkness,away from sin and the lust and desires of our flesh, to be with Him and to trust and rely soley on Him.

The Fragrance of Love
Song of Solomon 4:11-15KJV

 ¹¹Thy lips, O my spouse, drop as the honeycomb: honey and milk are under thy tongue; and the smell of thy garments is like the smell of Lebanon.
   ¹²A garden inclosed is my sister, my spouse; a spring shut up, a fountain sealed.
   ¹³Thy plants are an orchard of pomegranates, with pleasant fruits; camphire, with spikenard,
   ¹⁴Spikenard and saffron; calamus and cinnamon, with all trees of frankincense; myrrh and aloes, with all the chief spices:
   ¹⁵A fountain of gardens, a well of living waters, and streams from Lebanon.

footnote:

In order for love to be displayed the two parties spend much time together.The passage in song of Solomon talks about a cord,one not easily broken,around the neck of the couple. While yoked together, good pleasant communication,nourishing(milk) and sweet (honey), takes place between them.A comfort level is established in talking to one another about anything and everything,even one's personal information and secrets.In human relationships, and in the believer's relationship with Christ,the communication has to continue to deepen in order for intimacy and trust to build. This is a sign of true love.We now live our life based on God's love for us, but when we truly begin to live base on a sincere love for him we then will too develope an intimate relationship with our creator.

Love's Invitation
Song of Solomon 4:16-5:1KJV

¹⁶Awake, O north wind; and come, thou south; blow upon my garden, that the spices thereof may flow out. Let my beloved come into his garden, and eat his pleasant fruits
   ¹I am come into my garden, my sister, my spouse: I have gathered my myrrh with my spice; I have eaten my honeycomb with my honey; I have drunk my wine with my milk: eat, O friends; drink, yea, drink abundantly, O beloved.

footnotes:

By refering to his wife as his sister, we see that there are intimate aspects to their relationship that go beyond sexuality.She is not only his lover, but his friend,his love for her is unconditional.In all relationships misunderstandings occur and love may begin to fade.In chapter 4 a wind was asked to blow.The bible equates wind with the third person in the trinity,the Holy Spirit. As He is invited in to come be a part of the relationship and stir up affections, there seems to be a renewal of excitement and celebration between the couple.The Holy Spirit is the source of refreshment. In our relationship with Christ, when the communication begins to sour with complaints and trouble,the Holy spirit can and will come in a make a positive difference as it renews the joy of our salvation.

Life Worth Living

                                                             Sunday School Lesson
                                                                  October 16,2011

Lesson Scripture
Ecclesiastes 11:9-12:7,13

Introduction:
Advice to the young is here offerded by Solomon.Young people are free and fresh,hanging loose.But enjoy it while it last,Solomon says,because it won't last forever.Follow your heart,pursue dreams, but also know that God still has to be answered to in the end.He advises revering God often in the early years,and not saying ,"when I get older I will go to Church; that's when I will surrender my life to the Lord."Each individual is still going to have to give an account for his or her actions,even as a youth.

Days of Our Youth
Ecclesiastes11:9-10KJV
⁹Rejoice, O young man, in thy youth; and let thy heart cheer thee in the days of thy youth, and walk in the ways of thine heart, and in the sight of thine eyes: but know thou, that for all these things God will bring thee into judgment.
   ¹⁰Therefore remove sorrow from thy heart, and put away evil from thy flesh: for childhood and youth are vanity.

footnotes:

Here he gives instructions to the young who will will read his words.He tells them to live their youthful lives to the fullest,to take advantage of their youthful energy,and to experience everything they can while they have physical and emotional capacity to enjoy those things.However, they must do all those things in light of God's perfect judgement,for everyone will have to account for their youthful words and deeds of their youthful years.Everyone will be held morally responsible for his actions,no matter what age he was when he committed those actions.

The Olden Years
Ecclesiastes 12:1-3KJV

 ¹Remember now thy Creator in the days of thy youth, while the evil days come not, nor the years draw nigh, when thou shalt say, I have no pleasure in them;
   ²While the sun, or the light, or the moon, or the stars, be not darkened, nor the clouds return after the rain:
   ³In the day when the keepers of the house shall tremble, and the strong men shall bow themselves, and the grinders cease because they are few, and those that look out of the windows be darkened,

footnotes:

Solomon encourages the youth to allow God to use a young healthy body,he motivates the youth not to waste their time and opportunity in front of them.First and foremost, he tells them to remember their creator.He found himself doing this less and less as the pagan wives he collected turned his heart away from the Lord.When God is acknowledged as lord and Sovereign Ruler over the affairs of men,life is full of purpose.To further motivate the youth Solomon illustrates the diminishing capacity to live life as one grows older.Older adults have various physical problems to address such as poor vision, physical impairment, increased need for help from others,loss of hearing,memory impairmant,fraility, new fears of ordinary things,and so forth.Sometimes they feel they have one foot in the grave,and the family and friends are preparing for the eventual death of the older people.

The End of the Matter
Ecclesiastes 12:4-7,13KJV

  ⁴And the doors shall be shut in the streets, when the sound of the grinding is low, and he shall rise up at the voice of the bird, and all the daughters of musick shall be brought low;
   ⁵Also when they shall be afraid of that which is high, and fears shall be in the way, and the almond tree shall flourish, and the grasshopper shall be a burden, and desire shall fail: because man goeth to his long home, and the mourners go about the streets:
   ⁶Or ever the silver cord be loosed, or the golden bowl be broken, or the pitcher be broken at the fountain, or the wheel broken at the cistern.
   ⁷Then shall the dust return to the earth as it was: and the spirit shall return unto God who gave it.
 ¹³Let us hear the conclusion of the whole matter: Fear God, and keep his commandments: for this is the whole duty of man.

footnotes:

Life is wonderful,but it is also breif.No sooner are you born,than you look around and it's time to die.Solomon says it's all smoke, a vanity,a chasing after the wind.So he's trying his best to impart wisdom in order that others may live life fulfilled,content and well.See Solomon remembered the place where he started,when he was allowed any gift from God.As a young kid he asked for wisdom to lead the Lords people and God granted his request,alone with prosperity and peace.Solomon's greatest enemy turned out to be himself,when he allowed himself to be persuaded to forsake God. After years of stumbling,Solomon returned to square one.He realized there was only one path to purpose and meaning and that was to fear God and to obey Him.This wisdom is advantageous to everyone.His final word is ,fear God and do as He says;Period!There simply is no meaning to life apart from a dynamic and growing relationship with God.

The Superiority of Wisdom

                                                                Sunday School Lesson
                                                              Week of October 9,2011

   Lesson Scripture
Ecclesiastes 9:13-18

Introduction: Solomon loved wisdom;he embraced wisdom and held her in high regards.In modern terms,Solomon could be called a wisdom advocate.Solomon whole heartedly believed in the value of God's wisdom for every situation in life.As part of Solomon's wisdom,he told a story that emphasizes the value of wisdom over every human effort.He said it is better to have wisdom than a lot of physical strength and powerful war weapons.

Wisdom vs. Folly
Ecclesiastes 9:13-14KJV
¹³This wisdom have I seen also under the sun, and it seemed great unto me:
   ¹⁴There was a little city, and few men within it; and there came a great king against it, and besieged it, and built great bulwarks against it:

footnotes:

This week we begin a two-session study from th ebook of Ecclesiastes.here in the 9th chapter, Solomon looks back at an event that had a powerful effect on him.Here Solomon was looking at life from a human perspective,and from a human perspective,life can look very bleak and meaningless. The further Solomon got away from God,th eemptier and more meaningless hi slife became.He lost sight of the truth that when good things happen to the righteous,they bless God and those around them.And when they suffer that are able to rest in the fact that God is always in control,and there is a reason for everything that happens.

Wisdom vs. Strength
Ecclesiastes 9:15-16KJV

 ¹⁵Now there was found in it a poor wise man, and he by his wisdom delivered the city; yet no man remembered that same poor man.
   ¹⁶Then said I, Wisdom is better than strength: nevertheless the poor man's wisdom is despised, and his words are not heard.

footnotes:

In his story  Solomon recalls a poor,but wise man who somehow saved the city.We ar enot told how he did this.More than likely, he gave wise military advise based on his own personal experience. Long after Solomon's time,a single man save an entire ethnic group by his quiet wisdom, Mordecai. That story can be read in the book of Esther.From Solomon's purpose challenged perspective, he took this incident as typical of what happens when no one is in control.People do good,and no one notices,and so what is the use.But with God everything is noticed,and everything we do makes a difference.Solomon still concedes that wisdom is better than strength,but feel that no one notices. But rather anyone notices or not we must always do that which is right in the sight of God, for God will never forget the good we have done regardless of the non attention it might receive.

Wisdom vs. War

Ecclesiastes 9:17-18KJV

¹⁷The words of wise men are heard in quiet more than the cry of him that ruleth among fools.

   ¹⁸Wisdom is better than weapons of war: but one sinner destroyeth much good.

footnotes:

As Solomon reflects on the incident,he tries to make sense of it. Finally he concedes to what he knows is true,and what he know is wise.Many times wisdom is delievered quietly,and we must be still to hear it,and to heed it.Solomon knew from experience that there were many people out there who substituted volume for substance.and sometimes the largest crowds are following the more charismatic leader only because the delievery of his false message is more compelling than his wise,but quieter counter part.In the end Solomon concedes that we must put more weight on the message than we do on the messenger.With all th ewisdom God has made available to us ,it only takes one clever sinner to miss lead many with pretty words wrapped in a fancy delievery.Much like Israel, we often listen to foolish words of the world rather than the wise voice of the Lord.Jesus message of repentance and salvation was indeed drowned out by other louder voice.

************************************************************************************

God gives wisdom to those who ask(james 1:5).Studying Scripture and quiet contemplation with devote believers could be a good place to start.The fear of God is the beginning of wisdom.So ask God daily for His wisdom for your life.

Law and Order

                                                                  Sunday School Lesson
                                                                       October 2,2011


Lesson scripture                                                                          Lesson Focus
Proverbs 29:16-27                                                          Follow God in an unjust world       

Introduction:We must understand and reach out to the lost.When people are clueless about God and His ways,it results in confusion,and the enemy is able to freely circulate his destruction.God's children need to make sure they are intruducing unbelievers to Christ and giving biblical understanding,even if th eonly way a message can be preached is through a christ like life.

   There will always be challenging people and situations.Employees who won't listen, arrogant people who will talk before thinking,the weak who will allow others to walk all over them, and angry people who will stir up mess.But we must let go of superiority,and practice humility.Realize if it was not for God's grace,we all would be in the same boat.What the lost world says about the believer is irrelevant;wrap yourself in the arms of God's protection and prclaim to the world th egoodness of God.

Discipline and Revelation

Proverbs 29:16-19KJV

  ¹⁶When the wicked are multiplied, transgression increaseth: but the righteous shall see their fall.

   ¹⁷Correct thy son, and he shall give thee rest; yea, he shall give delight unto thy soul.
   ¹⁸Where there is no vision, the people perish: but he that keepeth the law, happy is he.
   ¹⁹A servant will not be corrected by words: for though he understand he will not answer

footnotes:

One of the deep mysteries of God is why He allows the wicked to prosper.But the proverb promises that the righteous will see justice done,if not in this life,then in the next.While the wicked may see themselves as autonomous and self-sufficient, one day they will see their error.Here we also see the cause and effect relationship of the effective discipline of children.First it brings peace,and then delight to the soul.Discipline in this text not only includes correcting bad behavior,but also praising what children do well.What ever gets rewarded gets repeated.When a child sees that a parent will not only notice but also praise good behavior they are likely to choose good over evil.But when we become to busy to notice, children will do what ever is needed to get attention from the parent.When we realize we will be held accountable for our behavior and judged by God guidlines for living this life,we will restrain from our own wickeness and seek out the things of God.

Hot-Tempered Fools 

Proverbs 29:20-23KJV

²⁰Seest thou a man that is hasty in his words? there is more hope of a fool than of him.

   ²¹He that delicately bringeth up his servant from a child shall have him become his son at the length.
   ²²An angry man stirreth up strife, and a furious man aboundeth in transgression.
   ²³A man's pride shall bring him low: but honour shall uphold the humble in spirit.

footnotes:

Think before you speak! Do you ever wish you could take back something you said? Perhaps you found it easy as putting toothpaste back in the tube.Some people, make speaking without thinking a habit.Like the fool these quick to speak people often justify their rushing words by calling themselves honest."I call'em as I see'em" but quite often,those words come back to haunt them.When people are allowed to get away with to much, it brings suffering to all involved.There is also destructive consequences of the habitually angry person.Anger,used effectively,can promote change.But when people use anger to control others,the hot tempers become contagious,Just as misery loves company,angry people love to generate rage in all they see.By stirring up dissension,they feel justified in their wrath.Then we see the contrast between pride and humility.Pride tends to bind one to the obstacles that lie ahead.When the prideful stumble,there usually aren't too many people around to support and lift them back up.But the humble can see clearly.These are the ones whose confidence rest in God and not themselves.

Fear vs.Trust

Proverbs 29:24-27KJV

 ²⁴Whoso is partner with a thief hateth his own soul: he heareth cursing, and bewrayeth it not.

   ²⁵The fear of man bringeth a snare: but whoso putteth his trust in the LORD shall be safe.
   ²⁶Many seek the ruler's favour; but every man's judgment cometh from the LORD.
   ²⁷An unjust man is an abomination to the just: and he that is upright in the way is abomination to the wicked.

footnotes:

Here we have the contrast fear of men with the trusting the Lord.People pleasers tend to dig holes for themselves out of which they cannot escape.The approval of others,or the avoiding rejection of people means everything to many on this journey.But they soon find out that pleasing everybody is impossible and so they find themslves trapped.But those who trust in the Lord are free from the traps of the people pleasers.The last proverb sets up an paralleled contrast:godly people hate the wicked,and wicked people can't stand the righteous.The wicked detest the righteous because the godly exposes what they do as evil.

*********************************************************************************

1)-Why does it take courage to follow God in an Unjust world?

2)What can people do when they see that the wicked are prospering?

3)How do you back up what you say by your actions?

4)When does anger become dangerous?

5)What is the advantage of being humble and notprideful?

6)What happens when we fear others more than we trust God?

7)Why is it important to trust God for ultimate justice?

For next weeks lesson read Ecclesiastes chapters (7-10).