Lesson Highlight: Love the LORD

mark12v30 - Love the Lord
In "Biblical Perspective", Dr. Gordon Snider writes:

This basic command to love originates in the Old Testament. With all thy heart ... soul ... mind ... strength. The interpreter should resist the temptation to find subtle differences between these words. They are used here to show that love must flow from the entire person. Love cannot be separated into compartments. The suggestion is that we will either love God with our all, or not at all. This is the first commandment. Jesus did not mean that this is the first commandment given in time, but that it is the first commandment in terms of priority.

Source: Biblical Family Values: Adult Teacher's Insights, p. 5.

2015-09-02T10:00:15+00:00September 2nd, 2015|Categories: Lesson Highlights|0 Comments

Lesson Highlight: "walk circumspectly" – Ephesians 5:15

Walk Circumspectly - Ephesians 5:15
"See then that ye walk circumspectly, not as fools, but as wise." (Ephesians 5:15)
Greg Blake writes in "Teaching Tips" for this week's lesson:

verse 15 is heightened by the imperative command in verse 17 to “become” or “be” (or even “prove yourselves”) “not unwise.” Sounding a definite warning to avoid foolishness and the dangers that the enticing ways of the “unwise” present, verse 17 rephrases Paul’s earlier urgings in verses 9 and 10. The “will of the Lord” is the standard for all Christian behavior. Disregard or disobedience will be evident by ensuing “unfruitful works of darkness.”

Discussion: In a practical sense, how does one walk circumspectly from day to day?
Source: Galatians and Ephesians, Adult Teacher's Insights, page. 75.

2015-08-28T06:00:10+00:00August 28th, 2015|Categories: Lesson Highlights|0 Comments

Lesson Highlight: "walk as children of light" – Ephesians 5:8

Walk as children of light - Ephesians 5:8"And walk in love, as Christ also hath loved us, and hath given himself for us an offering and a sacrifice to God for a sweet-smelling savor." (Ephesians 5:2)
William Sillings writes in this week's "Word Focus":

Followers (mimetes) presents a nice picture. The word means “an imitator.” It comes from a verb form which means “to mimic.” The picture is of a small child trying to be like his father.
“Be mimickers of God, as dear children.” Follow His footsteps. Seek to adopt His personality. Love the things He loves. Do the things He wants you to do. Obey Him from the heart, hating anything that might disappoint Him. What a beautiful picture of the Christian walk!
Walk in love (agape) means “benevolence” (5:2). It is this word that is used so often to describe the love of God — as it does here. The example for us to follow, the touchstone of love, is the love Christ had for us in giving Himself to die for us. It is also used to describe the love of the heart perfected by the Spirit of God.
Walk as children of light (photos) (5:8). Verse 13 defines light for us — “whatsoever doth make manifest.” Manifest (phanerountai) means “to make apparent.” The idea here seems to be that we should walk in light so much that we continually see the truth for what it really is, and not be deceived or go back to darkness.
Walk circumspectly (akribos) (5:15). This word means “to walk exactly, or accurately, or carefully.” Accurate walking is defined as not walking as fools (without wisdom) but as wise (with wisdom).

Source: Galatians and Ephesians, Adult Teacher's Insights, page 75.

2015-08-27T06:00:18+00:00August 27th, 2015|Categories: Lesson Highlights|0 Comments

Lesson Highlight: "followers of God" – Ephesians 5:1

In the "Biblical Perspective" for this week's lesson, Dr. Marsh Jones writes:

To be a follower of God means to imitate Him in His moral and ethical attributes. This is not follower in the sense of having an interest in a particular person or party, rather it is follower in its most intense meaning — one who sincerely seeks to take on the traits of the one to whom he has joined himself.

Discussion: Having followers or being a follower is a common term today. How is its use similar or different from the biblical meaning?
Source: Galatians and Ephesians, Adult Teacher's Insights, page 75.

2015-08-26T06:00:47+00:00August 26th, 2015|Categories: Lesson Highlights|0 Comments

Lesson Highlight: "be ye kind" – Ephesians 4:32

be ye kind - Ephesians 4:32
"And be ye kind one to another, tender-hearted, forgiving one another, even as God for Christ’s sake hath forgiven you." (Ephesians 4:32)
Dr. Marsh Jones writes in "Biblical Perspective" for this week's lesson:

Kindness, generosity, and compassion are all traits that a Christian constantly displays. Christ has given us an example of this in His behavior toward those to whom He ministered and those who were His detractors: “When he was reviled, [he] reviled not again; when he suffered, he threatened not” (1 Peter 2:23). The apostle also reminded us that when we feel unwilling to forgive someone who has wronged us, we should remember that Christ has forgiven us for the stupid and sinful things that we have done in the past. We should therefore forgive those who are only acting as we might have acted were it not for the grace of God!

Discussion: Why do we have difficulty being kind to anyone when we will not forgive a particular someone(s)?
Source: Galatians and Ephesians, Adult Teacher's Insights, page 72.

2015-08-21T06:00:25+00:00August 21st, 2015|Categories: Lesson Highlights|0 Comments

Lesson Highlight: "put on" – Ephesians 4:24

"put on" - Ephesians 4:24"And that ye put on the new man, which after God is created in righteousness and true holiness." (Ephesians 4:24)
In "Word Focus" for this week's lesson, William Sillings writes:

(1) Put off (apothesthai) means “to remove as one takes off clothes.” The verb is an aorist middle infinitive which indicates three things: (a) this is something we must do for ourselves, an action only we can carry out; (b) it is to be a once-and-for-all kind of action, “put off that old life once and for all, and never go back to it”; and (c) the infinitive form is used to denote the substance of what they had been taught, that which they were to put away, the old life with its old ways of thinking and acting.
(2) Put on (endusasthai) contrasts with the putting off. This word is often used of putting on a garment and is the positive side of verse 22.

Discussion: With this explanation in mind, what does it mean to put off the "old man" and to put on the "new man"?
Source: Galatians and Ephesians, Adult Teacher's Insights, page 68.

2015-08-20T06:00:22+00:00August 20th, 2015|Categories: Lesson Highlights|0 Comments

Lesson Highlight: Ephesians 4:20

"But ye have not so learned Christ; If so be that ye have heard him, and have been taught by him, as the truth is in Jesus: That ye put off concerning the former conversation the old man, which is corrupt according to the deceitful lusts; And be renewed in the spirit of your mind; And that ye put on the new man, which after God is created in righteousness and true holiness." (Ephesians 4:20-24)
The comments in "Biblical Perspectives" notes that verses twenty-one through twenty-four show the contrast in beliefs and lifestyle of the Christian and the unbeliever.
Exercise: List the various contrasts, putting them in your own words to make the meaning clearer.

2015-08-19T06:00:28+00:00August 19th, 2015|Categories: Lesson Highlights|0 Comments

Lesson Highlight: "church membership"

In "Teaching Tips" for this coming Sunday's lesson, Greg Blake writes...

Church membership is envisioned as a call, a dynamic activity. It is not about being a part of a self-justified or self-serving institution. The church exists in the service of its members growing up, maturing into the full stature of Christ. The church, in this vision, is a true center for spiritual discipline and development. Maturing into the full stature of Christ is the call of every baptized Christian, and the church serves the fulfillment of this call.

Source: Galatians and Ephesians: Adult Teacher's Insights, page. 64.

2015-08-14T06:00:25+00:00August 14th, 2015|Categories: Lesson Highlights|0 Comments

Lesson Highlight: "unity of the faith" – Ephesians 4:13

Till we all come in the unity of the faith, and of the knowledge of the Son of God, unto a perfect man, unto the measure of the stature of the fullness of Christ" (Ephesians 4:13).
Don Calloway writes in the "Doctrinal Discussion" for this week's lesson...

Jesus prayed for unity among His disciples in His high priestly prayer found in John 17. He prayed for unity so that the world would recognize that He came from the Father. The implication seems to be that if Christ’s disciples are not in unity, the world will question the reliability of Christ’s claim to be God. Sadly, the world often has a clearer picture of the way things ought to be in the church than the church has! When we fail to demonstrate the unity existing between the Father and the Son, there is going to be a disconnect between our words and the message we send to the world.

Discussion: How should this scripture about the "unity of the faith" inform our prayers as a local church?
Source: Galatians and Ephesians: Adult Teacher's Insights, page 66.

2015-08-13T06:00:17+00:00August 13th, 2015|Categories: Lesson Highlights|0 Comments

Lesson Highlight: "walk worthy" – Ephesians 4:1

Walk Worthy - Ephesians 4:1
"I therefore, the prisoner of the Lord, beseech you that ye walk worthy of the vocation wherewith ye are called" (Ephesians 4:1)
Teachers, here are a few discussion questions you could ask your students?
Discussion: What does it mean to "walk worthy"?
Discussion: What is the "vocation" to which we have been called?
Discussion: What then does it mean to walk worthy of this vocation?

2015-08-12T06:00:19+00:00August 12th, 2015|Categories: Lesson Highlights|0 Comments
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