Quote of the Day

“God has clothed His thoughts in words, and there is no way to know Him except by knowing the Scriptures.”

– John Stott

Quote of the Day

“Do not have your concert first and tune your instruments afterward. Begin the day with God.” 

– Hudson Taylor

Letter to a 13-Year Old Asking How to Go Deeper in Bible Study

From John Piper:

Dear [Samantha],

I got your note about going deeper with your Bible reading. Thanks for asking.

First, let me say that I am really encouraged that you take the Bible so seriously. Sometimes I hold it in my hand and feel the wonder that it is the very word of the Maker of the universe. Amazing.

You are right to read it every day and seek to let it permeate all your thoughts and feelings. When Paul says it is all inspired by God and that it is profitable so that you will be equipped for every good work, I believe he means that even the parts that are hard to read, or even sometimes confusing, will in the long run have an effect on your mind and your soul that will shape you into the kind of woman who can stand strong all your life for Jesus, and sniff out the errors of the world, and love all that is truly good and beautiful.

Here are a couple ideas for going deeper.

I think it is good to always be reading through the Bible as a whole. It sounds like you are doing that with the four book marks. That's good. I used the Discipleship Reading Plan for about 15 years and am now using McCheyen's Bible reading plan. It takes you through the whole Bible in a year plus the Psalms twice and the New Testament twice. If you wanted to try that sometime you could find it by just googling it.

In addition, it is good to focus on some unit of Scripture for going deeper, like a book or the Sermon on the Mount, or Romans 8. To go deeper, one way is to memorize it. I did that with the book of Philippians a couple years ago and then recited it in my January sermon on the importance of the Bible. Few things take you deeper into God's word like memorizing large portions of it. Here's a booklet you can download to show you how to memorize long passages.

Another thing to do with that special part of Scripture you are focusing on for a while, is to write it out longhand slowly in a note book. I do this with almost every sermon I preach. I don't fully understand it, but there are "eyes" in my pen. I see things when I slowly write the text. I see things that I see no other way. Another advantage of writing it out is that I can circle words that are repeated. I can underline phrases and draw lines between them. This helps me see connections in the passage. And connections are the key to meaning.

I think you should invest in a very good study Bible, like the ESV Study Bible, or ask your parents to get you one for your birthday. Or maybe just because you help wash the dishes! Then read the introduction to the part of Scripture that you are studying. And read the notes. Don't assume they are always right. Only the Bible itself is always right. But let it stir up thoughts that you can trace out for yourself.

With regard to prayer, this is absolutely crucial and I am glad you are doing it. God hears our prayers and helps us be humble enough and alert enough and in-tune enough to grasp what he says.

I use the acrostic I. O. U. S as I come to the Bible.

I. Incline my hear to your testimonies. Psalm 119:36 (Since my heart is inclined to sleep and to work and to lots of things other than the Bible.)

O. Open my eyes to see wonders in your word. Psalm 119:18 (Since my heart is so often dull and blind to the wonders of the word.)

U. Unite my heart to fear your name. Psalm 86:11 (Since my heart is often divided and distracted in many directions)

S. Satisfy me with your steadfast love. Psalm 90:14 (Since my heart is so tempted to be satisfied in other things.)

Besides these prayers, practice praying the prayers of the Bible. Besides the Lord's prayer my favorite is Ephesians 3:14–19. These prayers weave into our desires the kinds of desires that God taught us to have.

I hope that helps.

Grace be with you! Stay in the word!

Did you ever notice that every letter of Paul has near the beginning the words, "Grace be to you" and near the end it has the words "grace be with you." I think the reason is that as we start reading the letters he knows that God's grace is coming to us through the letter. And as we get ready to leave the letter and go to school or to work, he knows that God's grace will go with us.

So as I close, I say with Paul, grace be with you. But that's because grace comes to you every day as you read the Bible. Keep it up. You will never regret it.

Pastor John

Quote of the Day

“There is not enough Bible-reading among us. It is not sufficient to have the Book. We must actually READ it, and PRAY over it ourselves. It will do us no good, if it only lies still in our houses. We must be actually familiar with its contents, and have its texts stored in our memories and minds. Knowledge of the Bible never comes by intuition. It can only be obtained by diligent, regular, daily, attentive, wakeful reading.”

– J.C. Ryle

Secret Church

Right now, around the world, millions of Christ-followers are meeting in secret places, worshiping in hiding, practicing their faith behind closed doors. If exposed, they face prison, torture, even death. Yet their devotion to God and His Word are unwavering, even heroic. They are our brothers and sisters in Christ. We must learn to take our God as seriously as they do.

When we think of "church" in America, we think of going to meet at a building, singing, praying and hearing a message from a Pastor or teacher. But in many places around the world, "church" meets in a home, an apartment, even in secret. These small groups of Christ-followers often meet for many hours in study, prayer and fellowship, as it is dangerous to travel to "church" and they want to make the most of their time together.Secret Church is our "house church," where we meet periodically for an intense time of Bible study--lasting 4-6 hours--and prayer for our persecuted brothers and sisters across the globe. This is not for the uncommitted or faint at heart. But if you desire to know God more deeply through His Word, and know His Church more fully around the world, then please join us for Secret Church.God will use this focused time of study to enrich our knowledge of His Word as we gain understanding of the state of His Church and our persecuted brothers and sisters around the world. The objective of Secret Church is for you to pass along what you learn to others, so that you can make disciples of Christ--both locally and globally.

Manhood. Womanhood. Marriage. Parenting. Singleness. Sex. Divorce. Homosexuality. Same-sex marriage. Polygamy. Pornography. Adoption. Abortion. Cultures around the world perceive each of these issues differently. So how does God's Word address them? During Secret Church we will explore how the gospel uniquely affects our understanding of family, marriage, sex, and a host of related (and controversial) issues that are ultimately foundational for the display of the glory of God in our lives, in the church, and in the world.

If you are interested, show up Saturday February 11th at 4:00pm in the Youth Room of the Ministry Center.

How to Memorize: 10 Fast Facts

Recently came across some tips on memorizing. So here’s a short video with ten tips. Watch on Vimeo here.

1. Start early
2. Highlight
3. Graphics
4. Speak out loud
5. Emphasize
6. Set time limit
7. Let cement set
8. Review and review
9. Test
10. Practice

And here’s another post with ten study techniques that also touched on memorizing.
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Bible Reading Plans

What value do you place on reading the Word of God?

Have you ever read the whole Bible?

Justin Taylor provides some helpful reading plans as you reflect upon your growth during the past year and look forward to the coming year.

Questioning Your Pastor

Mark Altrogge: “Help your pastor. Help him preach more accurately. Help him see how to lead and care for people better. Encourage him. And if you have questions, feel free to ask.”

One of the Most Important Principles When Reading the Bible

Sometimes readers of the Bible see the conditions that God lays down for his blessing and they conclude from these conditions that our action is first and decisive, then God responds to bless us.

That is not right.

There are indeed real conditions that God often commands. We must meet them for the promised blessing to come. But that does not mean that we are left to ourselves to meet the conditions or that our action is first and decisive.

Here is one example to show what I mean.

In Jeremiah 29:13 God says to the exiles in Babylon, “You will seek me and find me, when you seek me with all your heart.” So there is a condition: When you seek me with all your heart, then you will find me. So we must seek the Lord. That is the condition of finding him.

True.

But does that mean that we are left to ourselves to seek the Lord? Does it mean that our action of seeking him is first and decisive? Does it mean that God only acts after our seeking?

No.

Listen to what God says in Jeremiah 24:7 to those same exiles in Babylon: “I will give them a heart to know that I am the Lord, and they shall be my people and I will be their God, for they shall return to me with their whole heart.”

So the people will meet the condition of returning to God with their whole heart. God will respond by being their God in the fullest blessing. But the reason they returned with their whole heart is that God gave them a heart to know him. His action was first and decisive.

So now connect that with Jeremiah 29:13. The condition there was that they seek the Lord with their whole heart. Then God will be found by them. But now we see that the promise in Jeremiah 24:7 is that God himself will give them such a heart so that they will return to him with their whole heart.

This is one of the most basic things people need to see about the Bible. It is full of conditions we must meet for God’s blessings. But God does not leave us to meet them on our own. The first and decisive work before and in our willing is God’s prior grace. Without this insight, hundreds of conditional statements in the Bible will lead us astray.

Let this be the key to all Biblical conditions and commands: “Work out your own salvation with fear and trembling, for it is God who works in you, both to will and to work for his good pleasure.” (Philippians 2:12-13). Yes, we work. But our work is not first or decisive. God’s is. “I worked harder than any of them, though it was not I, but the grace of God that is with me” (1 Corinthians 15:10).

Sunday School Questions for December 4

Hey Everyone.

Here are the questions for this Sunday.

I will have a paper copy for you this Sunday unless you would like we to continue posting them this way. Email me and tell me what you think!

Read Genesis 14:1-12.

Note: These events preceded Lot’s capture. They cover fourteen years and describe four separate events:

Genesis 14:1-3 – Fourteen years before Lot’s capture, Eastern Kings conquered the Siddim Valley.

Genesis 14:4 – The conquered peoples rebelled.

Genesis 14:5-7 – The Eastern kings came back to punish the people.

Genesis 14:8-12 – There was a battle, and Lot was captured.

1. a. List the names of the four conquerors from the East in 14:1.

b. List the names of the five Siddim Valley kings in Genesis 14:2.

c. From what great plain did the four come? (See also Genesis 11.)

d. Where is the Valley of Siddim (home of the five kings)?

2. How did Lot’s choices (Genesis 13) contribute to his being a prisoner (Genesis 14:11-12)?

Read Genesis 14:13-16.

3. What do you learn about Abraham that helps you understand why he won the victory?

4. Give several ways that Abraham illustrates a Christian engaged in a battle with unseen and “spiritual” enemies. (See 2 Corinthians 2:14-15 and Ephesians 6:10-18.)

5. In 2 Corinthians 10:3-5, Paul speaks of fighting with spiritual weapons. What are two spiritual weapons we can use? (See Ephesians 6:17-18.)

Read Genesis 14:17-24 and 15:1.

6. a. Which two kings officially honored Abraham at the victory celebration?

b. Describe Abraham’s meeting with each of them and his attitude toward each one.

7. What did he give to the king of Salem? (This is mentioned in Scripture for the first time.)

8. a. What two things did God promise Abraham in Genesis 15:1?

b. Why did Abraham need those special promises? (See Genesis 14:21-24.)

Read Psalm 110 and Hebrews 4:14-16 and 7.

9. a. By comparing Psalm 110:1 with Matthew 22:44-45, we learn that “Messiah” or “The Lord’s Anointed” is the subject of this Psalm. In what way does this Psalm prophesy that Messiah will be like Melchizedek (Genesis 14)?

b. List five ways that Melchizedek was a picture of Christ’s person and work. (See Hebrews 7.)

10. Give verses in the Hebrews passages that describe Christ as the personal Priest who continues His unceasing priestly work for every true believer in Him.

Read Hebrews 2:18; 4:14-16; 5; and 6:18-20.

11. What lessons concerning Christ as Priest would you choose to give to:

a. A discouraged Christian?

b. A tempted Christian?

c. A lonely Christian?

Sunday School Questions

Happy Thanksgiving everyone.

Melissa and I will be in Beautancus (yes it is a real place!) visiting my family and will not be in Sunday School. We will be back the following week and look forward to being with you all again.

I have listed the questions for this week's Sunday School time below. I know it will be a great discussion.

UPDATE: Here are the questions in a printable format.

Read Genesis 13:5-13.

1. How are Abraham's attitudes and actions an example for Christians who disagree with each other?

a. Genesis 13:5-13

b. 1 Corinthians 6:1-8

c. Ephesians 4:1-3

d. Ephesins 4:31-5:2

2. Why did Abraham have the right to choose first?

3. a. What was the basis for Lot's choice? Give the verse.

b. In what ways do people choose to live in a certain area for the same reasons today?

c. Exactly what was wrong with Lot's choice? Give verse.

d. What effect did his coice eventually have on his wife, his family, and his own spiritual well-being? Skim Genesis 14 and 19.

4. If we love the world and choose its viewpoint, how does this affect us?

a. John 14:27

b. John 17:15-16

c. Ephesians 4:17-20

d. James 4:4

e. 1 John 2:15-17

Read Genesis 13:5-18.

5. a. How did Lot temporarily seem to gain by his choice?

b. How did Abraham temporarily seem to lose by his choice?

6. How did God's promise to Abraham after Lot left him include more than he seemed to have given up?

7. a. What are some promises to the Christian who seems to give up so much for Christ's sake?

b. How are Christian blessings worth what Christ requires us to give up for Him?

8. a. What did God require Abraham to do in order to teach him that he must know God's inheritance and appropriate each promise in practical ways?

b. In what way does Joshua 1:3-9 illustrate these parts of true faith?

9. What words and phrases in Genesis 13; 15:18-21; and Jeremiah 31 make it clear that when God meant the land of Canaan was to be given to Abraham's descendants, this was to be taken literally?

Read Genesis 18:16-19:38.

10. What position must Lot have held in Sodomite society if he "sat in the gate"?

11. a. Lot may have thought that by going to live in Sodom he could influence the people of that city. Was he successful?

b. How did they react to his warnings?

12. What did Lot's family lose or gain by Lot's becoming an important man in Sodom?

13. What proof can you find in Genesis 18-19 that Lot had genuine faith in God's Word that resulted in moral righteousness? See also 2 Peter 2:7-8.

Read Luke 12:13-21 and 1 Corinthians 3:9-15.

14. How does 1 Corinthians 3:12-15 describe the eternal loss of a Christian who makes Lot's choice?

15. From the following verses, why are our choices after we become Christians so important?

a. Romans 14:10-12

b. 2 Corinthians 5:9-10

c. 1 John 2:28

16. How was Lot like the man in Luke's parable?