On 12-4-11 Genesis 12:1-9 will be our Adult Sunday School/Uniform Series/International Sunday School Lesson, herein is my commentary. This lesson is known by some as A Blessing for All Nations aka God's Call to Bless.

A Blessing for All Nations

Or

 God’s Call to Bless

Genesis 12:1-9

International Sunday School Lesson

December 4, 2011

Commentary

By

Jed Greenough

I feel for you this week if you are a teacher and you want to come up with a lesson that is unique for the scripture we are covering.  What can you come up with that is new and interesting that will help your class?  As you might imagine I have the same problem but then I realized that we need not look at it that way.  The reason for that is though well covered this section in our Bibles has to do with the calling of Abram (Abraham) and if you apply it to your students, I daresay they need to keep going over it until you and they see the kind of difference that we see in Abram but we’ll get back to that before we conclude.

We cannot say whether it was by an appearance or a voice or a dream that the calling we read about in today’s scripture came but however it occurred it was just as effective as that which called Saul (Paul) in Acts 9.  No debate, no questioning, just an obedient reaction.

Abram was able to take the effects of his household that had been built up over his 75 years but he obediently left more than that behind:  familiar environs, neighbors, family, where the water and grass would be found for their livestock, security issues such as who were to be trusted and who to suspect, known weather patterns and many important life sustaining concerns as well.

Wow, abandon the land that had provided for him, his family and his entire household to go to a place he wasn’t even informed of yet!  The promises sounded pretty good but you have to see that the calling had to be of monumental effect or all this would have just seemed like so many words.  And the effect was monumental as we see a man of 75 who was responsible for much head out into a promising, but as to specifics, unknown future.

Is this all a history lesson?  Are we only to take away from this scripture the past and where so much of our faith began?  As I began, one never knows if the lesson should be about the geography, the traditions, or the descendants if we are to keep a student’s interest or be helpful when covering such a familiar passage.  But I do think as I also stated near the beginning that the most important theme for adults is to concentrate on the calling and the transparency of it in the life of Abram

We ourselves are not all called to be pastors or teachers but we are all called to be priests (1 Peter 2:5, 9; Rev 1:6; 5:10; 20:6).  Are you seeing that reflected in even a small percentage of those where you worship?  The calling that we have received should have no less a monumental effect on us then it did on Abram.  Abram was the father of us all but we are the ones who are called to finish the job.  Our job is to do the work of the gospel and if people were writing Sunday school lessons about us one day would they struggle to come up with something worthwhile to say?

For Discussion:

1.      The first time God spoke to Abram is not recorded in Genesis.  Look at Acts 7:2 and compare with Genesis 11 and 12 and you will see God appeared to Abram before he moved to Haran. 

2.      Discuss why only Abram and his immediate household were to go to the land God would show him.  Do you feel it was so God would start a totally new beginning without any corrupting influence?  See Joshua 24:2.

3.      Discuss how everything in our Bible and our faith flows from this point.

4.      Discuss what Abram thought, what members of your group would think, at 75 to hear, “I will make you into a great nation….”

5.      See Galatians 3:8 in relation to today’s verse 3.

6.      God thought of Abraham as a _______.  Discuss and provide scripture.  Hint: Facebook

7.      Research and discuss our calling as Christians.

8.      Christmas is on a Sunday don’t cancel your class but make this last Sunday of the year the best attended one of the year!

12-11-11:  A Promise to Abraham (A Covenant with God), Genesis 15:1-6, 12-18

12-18-11:  The Lord Provides (The Challenge to Commitment), Genesis 22:1-2, 6-14 or 22:1-14

12-25-11:  According to the Promise (Mary’s Song of Praise), Luke 1:46-55 or 1:46-66; 2:1-7

1-1-12:      God Watches over Joseph (Guided by a Loving Lord) Genesis 39:7-21a

Scripture taken from the HOLY BIBLE, NEW INTERNATIONAL VERSION®. Copyright © 1973, 1978, 1984 Biblica. Used by permission of Zondervan. All rights reserved

On 11-27-11 Matthew 6:25-34 will be our Adult Sunday School Uniform Series/International Sunday School Lesson, herein is my commentary. This lesson is known by some as Facing Life Without Worry aka Don’t Worry About Tomorrow.

Facing Life without Worry

Or

 Don’t Worry About Tomorrow

Matthew 6:25-34

International Sunday School Lesson

November 27, 2011

Commentary

By

Jed Greenough

I have a rule that I feel compelled to run this ministry by and that is, “first do no harm.”  I take this role on with a great sense of responsibility and my hope is to serve you the reader.  My goal is to not only help you in your study but to enable you to do the same for those you meet with where you worship.  I guess you could then say that I am an enabler.

So since I have freely admitted that I am an enabler but one who seeks first to do no harm you must realize that I have given this next statement serious thought.  “Shame on those who would question your faith or cause you to question your faith because of today’s passage because you worry.”

You will not get that from me because I have beat myself up over this passage for the precise reason that I myself worry.  It is a part of the fabric of my being and it is with me when I consider writing this lesson, as I consider whether to let my kids drive to town, when I prepare for an exam and when I sleep at night.

I do not revel in it and would rather be like those of you who live a life of no worries but I know that then I wouldn’t be me.  I know that I wouldn’t get up every day at 4:00 to write.  I know that I wouldn’t be as motivated to do well on everything I do.  I know that I would become lax in my study and in my worship.  I know that there would be weeks that the lesson wasn’t posted for you.

I will even go so far as to tell you that worry has in fact drawn me closer to God, so don’t try beating me up about my lack of faith because I worry.  Some of you come along in your faith easily and I am truly happy for you but you forget that not all of us are the same.  Sometimes we must be brought to the brink before we hear God’s call.  Others have an immature inactive faith and must be brought to our knees.  Believe me then when I tell you that worry is a tool that God can in fact use

If we were all perfect we wouldn’t need a large chunk of our Bible that gives us instruction in the ways of righteousness.  We also wouldn’t need the large dose of scripture that provides comfort.  Comfort is what I want you to draw from today’s scripture instead of guilt as some would rather teach.

When the times of trouble come and come they will, draw comfort from the words of Christ found in these verses.  When economic woes threaten and you consider whether you will be able to buy the new shoes for your kids consider these verses.  As the cares and worries of your aging body and mind mount consider these verses.

Christ didn’t say, “If you worry, your faith is insufficient for me and I abandon you.”  No, He said, “Don’t worry” and He goes on to explain that you have a Father who knows what you need so in the meantime seek His kingdom and His righteousness.

It might be that the insurance will lapse, the car won’t be repaired and that the pain in your body is what you fear but since you have faith (despite what some say) it is to places like Matthew 6:25-34 that you can turn and be comforted.  Here you will be reminded that you to need to seek Him because He knows best and this can ease those anxious thoughts.

Worry is a part of life even for Christians and that is why some of the scriptures that deal with it are not obscure but well known.

1 Peter 5:7

Cast all your anxiety on him because he cares for you.

Philippians 4:6-7

Do not be anxious about anything, but in everything, by prayer and petition, with thanksgiving, present your requests to God.  And the peace of God, which transcends all understanding, will guard your hearts and your minds in Christ Jesus.

Thanks be to God that He recognized that we would worry and that we would need reminded to turn to Him and then be reminded what we should instead be concentrating on.  If it had been left up to those who tell us how sinful we are for our anxious thoughts we wouldn’t have those scriptures.

For Discussion:

1.      Food, clothing, shelter are all legitimate concerns.  What can you do as a group or church to make sure that those first within your midst are taken care of and then those outside the church that you can aid?

2.      Did you know that anxieties about the cares of life are one of the signs of the end of the age?  Anxieties will only grow in our world and that is why Christ warned of them and how if we are not careful we will forget to turn to Him in how we deal with them.  See Luke 21:5-36 and specifically Luke 21:25-26, 34.

3.      Many, if encouraged to share, have wonderful examples from their lives of how they have been comforted by the scriptures or had their needs miraculously met.

4.      For an example of a worrier who was reminded of what was more important see Luke 10:38-42.  Know that she was still loved (John 11:5).  See the entire course of life being lived out: worry, realization of that most feared, reminder and evidence of faith and in the end the great joy and justification for that faith by reading all of John 11.

5.      For those who have overcome obsessive worrying, your story would be valuable to share with others.

6.      It is difficult to remember in times of worry, but discuss how God can in the end be glorified in the final outcome of certain worrisome times.

7.      Discuss that the thing we are to seek before all else is His kingdom and righteousness.

12-4-11:    A Blessing for All Nations (God’s Call to Bless), Genesis 12:1-9

12-11-11:  A Promise to Abraham (A Covenant with God), Genesis 15:1-6, 12-18

12-18-11:  The Lord Provides (The Challenge to Commitment), Genesis 22:1-2, 6-14 or 22:1-14

12-25-11:  According to the Promise (Mary’s Song of Praise), Luke 1:46-55 or 1:46-66; 2:1-7

Scripture taken from the HOLY BIBLE, NEW INTERNATIONAL VERSION®. Copyright © 1973, 1978, 1984 Biblica. Used by permission of Zondervan. All rights reserved

This is the Adult Sunday School/International Sunday School/Uniform Series Lesson known by some as Praying as God's People aka The Practice of Prayer on Matthew 6:5-15 for 11-20-11

November 20, 2011 Adult Sunday School on Matthew 6:5-15
Let's talk about prayer.

Commentary

By

Jed Greenough

Are you a spectacle?  Do you enjoy it when everyone’s eyes are on you?  Well there is one place you shouldn’t be according to the Lord Himself and that is when you go to the Father in prayer.

Now we aren’t talking about ceasing the prayers we do together in our meetings, Sunday School, groups and times of worship.  No, we are talking about when others are going about their lives or their meetings, Sunday School etc. and someone throws what everyone else is doing aside and breaks into a public spectacle of their own prayer. 

You see my suspicions are that just like other instructions we received through the scriptures about worship, when it comes to prayer, our God is one of order and not chaos. 

These instructions won’t matter a great deal to the hypocrite that Christ mentions because it’s usually all about them anyway.  But for those that have kind of grown comfortable in the practice but truly are interested in worshiping Him in spirit and in truth there it is, He doesn’t like it.

So what does He like?  This may sound stupid but it is what came to me and stuck there so here it goes.  He wants you to pray in a way that measures your words almost as if He were someone who didn’t have all the time in the world, though He does.  Imagine that you had the opportunity to talk with the most important man or woman in the world, let’s say the head of your country. Envision that you had something to talk about with them that were of the utmost importance. I am sure you know that a person at this level of power would have a very tight, structured schedule and that your time would be limited.  You would choose your words wisely and I am sure you would treat them with the greatest decorum.

Now this really isn’t the greatest analogy but I am sure you get the point that though God always has time for you He is still this holy God of order that we should approach with the greatest reverent awe.

Christ indicates that we should approach Him thus and after coming to Him in this way acknowledge that no matter what, it is His creation and it is His will that really matters in the end.  Ask Him for what you truly need.  Ask Him for forgiveness never forgetting to do likewise.  And finally ask for His assistance as you walk in this fallen world.

I think that this is a good reminder to us that maybe in our zeal and love for Him we tend to bring Him down to our level and forget that as Isaiah 55:9 tells us the difference between His ways and ours and His thoughts and ours are like the difference between the heavens and earth.  That’s the way we should want Him to be and that’s the way He is.  We just need to act like it.

Ecclesiastes 5:1-7

Stand in Awe of God

 Guard your steps when you go to the house of God. Go near to listen rather than to offer the sacrifice of fools, who do not know that they do wrong.  Do not be quick with your mouth, do not be hasty in your heart to utter anything before God. God is in heaven and you are on earth, so let your words be few.  As a dream comes when there are many cares, so the speech of a fool when there are many words.  When you make a vow to God, do not delay in fulfilling it. He has no pleasure in fools; fulfill your vow.  It is better not to vow than to make a vow and not fulfill it.  Do not let your mouth lead you into sin. And do not protest to the temple messenger, “My vow was a mistake.” Why should God be angry at what you say and destroy the work of your hands?  Much dreaming and many words are meaningless. Therefore stand in awe of God.

For Discussion:

1.     None of this is said to suggest we pray less just that the Bible indicates there is an orderly way to pray to an awesome God of order.

2.     Do a concordance study of prayer.

3.     Read several scriptures in your group concerning prayer.  Some suggestions: Romans 8:26-27, 2 Chronicles 7:14, James 5:16.

4.     Read and discuss some of David’s prayers in the Psalms.

5.     Not everyone will agree with my view obviously, discuss people’s viewpoints on prayer.

6.     Discuss how we may have inadvertently lowered our prayer standards and what might be done to raise those standards.

7.     Though Christ gives us a pattern here in today’s scripture for prayer, obviously it is not an all-inclusive one.  Clearly there are other things such as thanksgiving that should go into our daily prayers.

Hebrews 5:7

During the days of Jesus’ life on earth, he offered up prayers and petitions with loud cries and tears to the one who could save him from death, and he was heard because of his reverent submission.

11-27-11:  Facing Life without Worry (Don’t Worry About Tomorrow), Matthew 6:25-34

12-4-11:    A Blessing for All Nations (God’s Call to Bless), Genesis 12:1-9

12-11-11:  A Promise to Abraham (A Covenant with God), Genesis 15:1-6, 12-18

12-18-11:  The Lord Provides (The Challenge to Commitment), Genesis 22:1-2, 6-14 or 22:1-14

12-25-11:  According to the Promise (Mary’s Song of Praise), Luke 1:46-55 or 1:46-66; 2:1-7

Scripture taken from the HOLY BIBLE, NEW INTERNATIONAL VERSION®. Copyright © 1973, 1978, 1984 Biblica. Used by permission of Zondervan. All rights reserved

On 11-13-11, Matthew 5:43-48 or 5:38-48 will be our Adult Sunday School/Uniform Series/International Sunday School Lesson this is my commentary.  This week’s lesson is known by some as Loving as God’s People aka Loving Your Enemies.  You will find the 11-06-11 lesson Forgiving as God’s People aka First be Reconciled directly beneath this message and/or on the right side.

Jed

Loving as God’s People

Or

 Loving Your Enemies

Matthew 5:43-48 or 5:38-48

International Sunday School Lesson

November 13, 2011

Commentary

By

Jed Greenough

Part I 5:38-42

Those of you whose lessons include these verses should have interesting discussions as you all share your thoughts about what you think and what others have thought down through the years about what Jesus was saying here.

Many will say that Jesus overturned what had been a long standing system of justice in an eye for an eye.  While others will say Jesus wasn’t being literal.  What will you say?  I say He was doing both.

Jesus being fully God is not a man that He should change His mind (Numbers 23:19 and 1 Samuel 15:29) and so when we read Him say, “You have heard that it was said to the people long ago, ‘Do not murder, and anyone who murders will be subject to judgment.’  But I tell you that anyone who is angry with his brother will be subject to judgment.”  Do you think He was changing His mind about murder?  Of course not!

So when we read Him saying, “You have heard that it was said, ‘Eye for eye, and tooth for tooth.’  But I tell you, do not resist an evil person.  If someone strikes you on the right cheek, turn to him the other also.”  He wasn’t changing His mind here either.

In 5:28 Jesus said that anyone who looks at a woman lustfully has committed adultery with her in his heart and if their eye has caused them to sin they should gouge it out.  I ask you, how many one eyed men are there in your church?

Should a man commit adultery?  Of course not!  Should they literally chop off their limbs and gouge out their eyes?  Again, of course not, it was the man who sinned and not his part and it is the man who needs to change his behavior.

Likewise, eye for an eye, meaning justice that is fair and equal, is still to be measured out, Christ has not, like a man changed His mind, but rather it is man’s behavior that should change.  Imagine how fewer things would escalate to assaults and lawsuits, war and punishment if the behavior of men towards each other should change.

Part II 5:43-48

Have you ever had an enemy or at least someone who persecuted you?  I am sure if you have lived any part of a worldly life you have had an enemy or two.  And if you have “lived a Godly life in Christ Jesus” 2 Timothy 3:12 at all you have been persecuted.  So, how’d you do loving and praying for them?

I pray that God showed through your reactions.  That is really what Christ is saying here when He says, “Be perfect, therefore, as your heavenly Father is perfect.”  Just as God “causes His sun to rise on the evil and good, and sends rain on the righteous and the unrighteous.”, so too are we to react with love towards even those who hate and persecute us.  And because we are heirs with Christ, God as our Father is patiently expecting things from us. “He is patient with you not wanting anyone to perish” 2 Peter 3:9

You see if we react the way the world reacts then we are no different from the world.  But if we react as God does with us, with patience, then we are emulating Him.  The world expects us to react as it does when they hate us or persecute us but to react with love and patience is a witness.  The “Lord’s patience means salvation” 2 Peter 3:15 perhaps for those who hate and persecute you.  This is being perfect like the Father.

 

For Discussion:

1.     “To hate your enemy” is not from God but must have been how they had twisted things to do the opposite from love your neighbor.

2.     Proverbs 19:11

3.     Concerning eye for an eye, read Exodus 21, Leviticus 24 and Deuteronomy 19.

4.     Have people discuss occasions when they should have turned the other cheek and did not and occasions when they did.

5.     With regard to verse 42, discuss how we have had a tendency to grow cold towards all those who ask from us.  Is it better to give to someone who does not deserve than to risk not giving to those who truly need?

6.     Discuss that Christmas Day is on a Sunday and that your class is one that will not give up meeting that day!  Your class should be like a family and should meet especially on this day.

Upcoming Adult Sunday School Lessons

11-20-11:  Praying as God’s People, Matthew 6:5-15

11-27-11:  Facing Life Without Worry, Matthew 6:25-34

12-4-11:    A Blessing for All Nations, Genesis 12:1-9

12-11-11:  A Promise to Abraham, Genesis 15:1-6, 12-18

12-18-11:  The Lord Provides, Genesis 22:1-2, 6-14

12-25-11:  According to the Promise, Luke 1:46-55

Scripture taken from the HOLY BIBLE, NEW INTERNATIONAL VERSION®. Copyright © 1973, 1978, 1984 Biblica. Used by permission of Zondervan. All rights reserved