Who is my neighbor?

In "God's Word for Today" Gordon Snider writes:

God has always called His people to give special attention to their relationships with their neighbors. A review of the nearly thirty times the word is used in the first five books of the Bible shows that any wrong is magnified if it is committed against a neighbor. In his attempt to avoid that added responsibility, the lawyer who questioned Jesus in Luke 10 asked, “Who is my neighbor?” Jesus' answer was the story of the Good Samaritan. Our age of electronic communication has greatly expanded our neighborhoods. Many people carry on meaningful relationships with people they have never seen. A starting place for today's lesson could easily be a repeat of the lawyer's question, “Who is my neighbor?” Once that question has been answered, the Christian is faced with the responsibility of that relationship. The texts for today's les-son help us to better understand that responsibility.

Source: Building Christian Relationships: Adult Teacher's Insights, page 70.

2017-05-18T09:45:00+00:00May 18th, 2017|Categories: Lesson Highlights|Tags: |0 Comments
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Is it harder to get along with the Christian?

In "Doctrinal Discussion" Jason Lindahl writes:

A friend was describing conditions at his former place of employment. The picture was not rosy — bad attitudes, squabbles, childish behavior. The sad thing, he lamented in conclusion, was that the people who claimed to be Christians were the hardest with which to work. Those who made no claims to grace were, for the most part, the preferred co-workers. Too often, such an accusation has been repeated. “Christians” may be faithful at church attendance three times a week, be diligent in tithing and even verbal witnessing for Jesus, and wear three-quarter-length sleeves with fashionable ease; but whatever happened to graciousness, kindness, and consideration for others? What place is there for a chip on a Christian's shoulder, or a bite in a Christian's speech? Why doesn't anyone like to work with you, Christian? Are you sure it is just persecution?

Source: Building Christian Relationships: Adult Teacher's Insights, page 67.

2017-05-13T09:00:00+00:00May 13th, 2017|Categories: Lesson Highlights|Tags: |0 Comments
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A Call for Unity

In "Word Focus" Glenn McClure writes:

The serious student of Scripture will often find himself confronted with the need for balance in applying the Bible to life situations. The opening line of our printed text today is a case in point. Without doubt Scripture demands that the sincere disciple of Christ take a firm stand for what is right (Jude 1:3). But in our lesson today the companion truth is emphasized, which is the requirement of unity in the Body of Christ. The text reads, “Be ye all of one mind,” or literally, “of one mind, united.” The exact form Peter used appears only here in Scripture. In Greek it is a compound word: the first word meaning “together,” and the second word meaning “mind or understanding.” In classical Greek it literally meant “to be of one mind, to have the same thoughts.” It was used of the unity of conspirators. It was also the word used to indicate that an issue was decided by “common consent.” Both thoughts and feelings were included in its meaning. The Church fathers used this word often. To them it meant “unity of mind, agreement, and concord.”

Source: Building Christian Relationships: Adult Teacher's Insights, page 64.

2017-05-12T09:03:00+00:00May 12th, 2017|Categories: Lesson Highlights|Tags: |0 Comments
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A Focus on What We Have In Common

In "God's Word for Today" Gordon Snider writes:

Peter began by addressing the Christian's attitude toward fellow Christians. He was addressing believers who were living under persecution and the stress that creates in relationships. It is easy to be critical and defensive when you are constantly under attack. Peter urged his readers to resist that temptation. The focus should be on what Christians have in common, and not on their differences (“be . . . of one mind”). Attitudes of sympathy, compassion, and consideration were to be prominent. And if they are, Peter reasoned, it will affect the use of your tongue. Words of blessing will be more common than words of criticism. Your words will bring peace instead of division; healing rather than hurt. Your speech will be marked by transparency rather than deception. Verse 12 suggests clearly that such a person is the one who finds favor in the eyes of God.

Source: Building Christian Relationships: Adult Teacher's Insights, page 65.

2017-05-11T08:54:00+00:00May 11th, 2017|Categories: Lesson Highlights|Tags: |0 Comments
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A Life Lived as a Thank You to God

In "Biblical Perspective" Larry Grile writes:

Israel's parents could tell their children that their life style was based squarely both on what God had done for them and on what God had spoken to them. Since God had redeemed them from Egyptian bondage, He had a right to expect from them an altered life style, a life style that both would glorify Him and would be for their own good. God's requirements are always for our good, so that He can be good to us in wonderful and innumerable ways. Parents could remind their children that the pious keeping of God's laws was the evidence and measure of genuine righteousness, and that through their righteousness God would be able to pour out on them His goodness and blessings. Parents needed to remind their children that they were just as obligated as their parents were to preserve the blessings of God by faithful and continued obedience in the years to come.

Source: Building Christian Relationships: Adult Teacher's Insights, page 61.

2017-05-06T08:56:00+00:00May 6th, 2017|Categories: Lesson Highlights|Tags: |0 Comments
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Why do you live differently than the world?

In "Doctrinal Discussion" Jason Lindahl writes:

“And when thy son asketh thee in time to come, saying, What mean the testimonies, and the statutes, and the judgments, which the LORD our God hath commanded you?” (Deut. 6:20). “And when thy son asketh thee”: The assumption is that your son will ask you. If your children do not notice that they are different from the rest of the world, then something is wrong. Jesus said of His disciples, “They are not of the world, even as I am not of the world” (John 17:16). If we are truly Jesus' disciples, our children will notice that we are different. The answer is not simply, “Because God said so.” That is the beginning of the answer, but notice: The children already know that. They know that these rules are what “the LORD our God hath commanded you.” But why did He command them? Why does He require these things of us? Why do we have to be different? They need to know, “Because God said so,” but that is not enough.

Source: Building Christian Relationships: Adult Teacher's Insights, page 62.

2017-05-05T09:11:00+00:00May 5th, 2017|Categories: Lesson Highlights|Tags: |0 Comments
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What must the next generation do to enjoy God's blessing?

In "God's Word for Today" Gordon Snider writes:

They must have a different inner motivation than their fathers had. They must have a heart to obey their God (6:1-3). They must never allow the knowledge of what pleases God to be forgotten (6:4-9). They must look for practical ways to ensure that their covenant with God was not violated (6:10-25). One of those practical ways of keeping the romance in their relationship with God was intentionally to pass their love for God on to their children (6:20-25). For no matter how much they determined to keep God in their hearts, if they did not communicate that same value to their children, their children would lose the benefits of the covenant. To be sure, that process begins in 6:7, but it is the total focus of 6:20-25. The strength and security of the country depended, as it still does, on the integrity of the home. Every parent/teacher knows the value of “teaching moments.” Moses urged parents to seize the moments to instill a love of the covenant in their children. A country is only as strong as the homes that form its foundation.

Source: Building Christian Relationships: Adult Teacher's Insights, page 59.

2017-05-04T09:22:00+00:00May 4th, 2017|Categories: Lesson Highlights|Tags: |0 Comments
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Love and Submission

In "Biblical Perspective" Larry Grile writes:

The highest ideal of love is that we love our neighbors as ourselves (Lev. 19:18; Matt. 22:39). This means that we transfer the love we naturally have for ourselves to include having a caring and thoughtful regard for others. This kind of love should be most evident in marriage. Husbands need to express their love verbally and practically every day. Women are usually more loving than men, and they also need the security of being loved. It is much easier for a wife to be submissive when a man truly loves and affirms her. Reverence includes the ideas of submission, respect, and deference. God has so made men that they need and desire these qualities in a woman, but they cannot require them. Reverence is needed because man is the authority and head of the home. Respectful submission is part of a woman's submission to God. Husbands can lead only when wives will follow. A woman is much easier to love when she is submissive, respectful, and affectionate. Only as men love and lead, and women respect and follow, can marriage reach the joyful and fulfilling ideal it was meant to be.

Source: Building Christian Relationships: Adult Teacher's Insights, page 53.

2017-04-29T09:18:00+00:00April 29th, 2017|Categories: Lesson Highlights|Tags: , |0 Comments
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When the family is run without the operations manual…

In "Doctrinal Discussion" Jason Lindahl writes:

In fact, progressive society now tells us that the basic parts of a family machine are no longer necessary for it to run smoothly. Instead of parts A and B, we can substitute two A parts or two B parts and everything will work just fine. Satan can and will twist and distort anything and everything good which God has designed and created, but he cannot destroy the original blueprint. Have you ever used a machine or device for which you did not have the instruction manual, and while you could get it to function to some degree, you could just tell something wasn't right? The machine didn't seem to be working as efficiently as it should, and there were sections or parts that didn't seem to be useful for anything but must be designed for something. In the same way, in spite of all of society's confident insistence that the family can be anything we want it to be, there is a nagging reminder that Somebody designed this relationship, and it will never function properly except in the way fashioned by the Designer.

Source: Building Christian Relationships: Adult Teacher's Insights, page 56.

2017-04-28T09:25:00+00:00April 28th, 2017|Categories: Lesson Highlights|Tags: |0 Comments
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Is your family functional or dysfunctional?

In "God's Word for Today" Gordon Snider writes:

“Dysfunctional family” is a common term these days. Psychology Dictionary defines that term as “a family showing impaired communication and relationships where members are unable to get close.” There may be a tendency to think of such a family as including divorced parents, alcohol or some other substance abuse, and/or moral failure. But by definition, a family may be dysfunctional where none of these components exist. It just means that a family is not close enough to communicate or feel connected on a meaningful level. God created the family to be a tightly knit unit where life's deepest emotional needs could be met. Yet many Christian families fail to operate with this degree of intimacy among its members: Obedience is compelled but not inspired; respect is demanded, but loving consideration is not shown; love is based upon things given instead of communication shared. To get back to God's intention for the family, the Christian home should follow God's relational principles.

Source: Building Christian Relationships: Adult Teacher's Insights, page 52.

2017-04-27T09:15:00+00:00April 27th, 2017|Categories: Lesson Highlights|Tags: |0 Comments
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