Key Texts: Deut. 32:45–47; Gen. 49:8-12; Isa. 53:3-7; 1 Cor. 15:3-5, 51-55; Rom. 12:2.
Part I: Overview
In a world of media overload, we are increasingly being bombarded by ideas that compete for our attention and promise the newest trends to guide our lives. It has become more difficult in this environment of overstimulation to find quiet time with the Word of God. Some may even begin to wonder whether the Bible is still relevant in today’s fast-paced world. We need to be reminded of the injunction to “be still, and know that I am God” (Ps. 46:10) as a way to help us recognize that the Bible is still God’s greatest gift to communicate His plan of Redemption. There is no other book like it anywhere in the world.
A number of important elements make the Bible unique when compared to other religious books. Four elements, in particular, stand out in stark contrast to the philosophical and esoteric thoughts of the likes of Confucius, the Qur’an, and the Hindu sacred writings: (1) the Bible is comprised of up to 30 percent prophecy and prophetic literature; (2) the Bible is constituted in history, that is, it speaks of a God who acts in history; (3) the Bible events are placed in a spatial dimension of real geographical places, and (4) the Bible has the power to transform lives because of the God who speaks to us through His living word. Is it any wonder, then, that for centuries it has inspired the greatest works of music, art, and literature? This week we will study why the Bible is unique and unrivaled and remains so, even with the fast growth of technology and knowledge in the twenty-first century.
Part II: Commentary
Illustration
The great pyramids of Egypt tower over the modern city of Cairo. Excavations have revealed that they were built during the Old Kingdom with a sophisticated technology and knowledge of building that assumed mathematics and astronomy that was not thought to have existed before the Greeks. Until the Eiffel Tower was completed in Paris in 1889, the Great Pyramid was the tallest building in the world for thousands of years. Today, archaeologists still grapple with the logistics and enormity of this accomplishment. Moses arrived in ancient Egypt hundreds of years after the Great Pyramid was erected and was educated to be the future king of this greatest of empires. Yet, “By faith Moses, when he became of age, refused to be called the son of Pharaoh’s daughter” (Heb. 11:24, NKJV).
Scripture
The last words of Moses to the people he led to the Promised Land were these: “ ‘Set your hearts on all the words which I testify among you today, which you shall command your children to be careful to observe—all the words of this law’ ” (Deut. 32:46, NKJV). Setting to heart is an expression used in the Bible to describe the internalization and depositing of God’s Word within the heart. Moses emphasizes this idea when he instructs that children especially should be commanded to follow the instructions or law of God. This law is more important than anything, for “it is your life” (Deut. 32:47).
Discuss with your class how they deal with the distractions all around them and maintain a living relationship with Christ through His Word. Ask the class to assess how much time they spend on certain activities every day (answering emails, texting, social media, television, work, family, devotions). Observe that those activities that we spend most of our time on are often those that are most important in our lives. What intentional steps are your class members taking to pass on their Christian experience to their children? Why is this living legacy so important in the time in which we live?
Scripture
The Bible is filled with places wherein God revealed Himself. Among some of the more memorable spots are Mount Moriah when Abraham was about to slay Isaac (Gen. 22:2), the burning bush on Mount Horeb in Sinai (Exod. 3:1-4), the Red Sea through which Israel escaped on dry land (Exod. 14:1-30), and Capernaum where so many of the healing miracles of Jesus occurred. This pattern of incorporating a spatial dimension into the events described actually sets the Bible apart from most other holy writings (the entire Qur’an, for example, contains fewer geographical designations than those found in Genesis 1–20 alone). The Bible contains references to hundreds of cities and lands, including references to specific mountains, bodies of water, deserts and wildernesses, regions, and states. There are times when the geography is a crucial element that gives added meaning and dimension to an event.
Bethlehem is one example of how the Bible’s geography is important to our understanding of biblical history. In Hebrew, Bethlehem means “the house of bread.” It was in Bethlehem that Ruth and Boaz met and were married. There, they had a son named Obed, who had a son named Jesse. Jesse became the father of David, who would later establish a dynasty of kings that would rule in Jerusalem for hundreds of years until the destruction of the temple (Ruth 4:13-17; Matt. 1:5, 6). When Samuel came to anoint a new king, he came to Bethlehem where God directed him to anoint David. Then, 700 years before the birth of Jesus, Micah 5:2 predicts that the Messiah will be born in Bethlehem, which is in Judea. So, it should not surprise us that God sends Jesus, “the bread of life” (John 6:33-51) to be born in Bethlehem, the house of bread. Born of the Holy Spirit to Mary, Jesus brings the fullness of the gospel to the world over which He will one day reign as King of kings forever.
Ask the class what other significant insights can be gained from understanding the geography and place names of surrounding historical events in the Bible. For example, what was the relationship between Abraham’s encounter with God on Mount Moriah and Christ’s death in the same vicinity nearly two thousand years later?
Illustration
Jose grew up in the inner city of Detroit, Michigan. At the age of eleven he was already getting involved in a local gang. He walked the walk and talked the talk. His parents were worried about where he was heading. One day they received an advertisement for a vegetarian cooking school. Jose’s father was a cook in a local restaurant and began to attend with his wife. In one of the meetings, a Vacation Bible School was announced, and Jose and his sisters began to attend. Jose had never heard much about the Bible. He was very intrigued by the story of Joshua and his conquest of Canaan under God’s leadership. He learned that God was a powerful God and could overcome the enemies of His people. Jose wanted to know more and began to read the Bible. Soon he was enrolled in the local Pathfinder club. His parents noticed major changes. Jose’s language changed. His clothing changed. Even the way he walked changed. Six months later, Jose requested baptism. His family was amazed at the change in Jose’s life. They wanted what Jose was experiencing. After studying the Bible together with the pastor, the whole family was baptized on a Sabbath morning. The power of God’s Word had transformed their lives.
Scripture
Josiah was eight years old when he became king of Judah. The Bible says that his grandfather Manasseh served the Canaanite gods, engaging in spiritualism and its associated sexual perversions, along with astrology. Manasseh even sacrificed his own son. He led his people into terrible apostasy, for he “seduced them to do more evil than did the nations whom the LORD destroyed before the children of Israel” (2 Kings 21:9). From Josiah’s genes and upbringing, we might expect that Judah would be doomed to the same fate as under King Manasseh, but instead, the Bible says that Josiah “did that which was right in the sight of the LORD, and walked in all the way of David his father, and turned not aside to the right hand or to the left” (2 Kings 22:2). What made the difference?—the discovery and reading of God’s Word, Josiah’s deep repentance, and his actions to restore all of Israel to the right worship of God. Excavations in Judah covering this time period have revealed a temple at Arad with two altars and standing stones in the Most Holy Place that represented more than one deity. This temple was destroyed at the end of the seventh century, which many scholars have attributed to the work of Josiah. Because of this great reformation, God spared Judah and Jerusalem for some time and withheld His judgment until some 35 years later. God promised, “Thine eyes shall not see all the evil which I will bring upon this place” (2 Kings 22:20). After reading 2 Kings 21:2–9, ask the class how this description of Judah compares with the challenges of evil in this world today. How can Scripture transform our lives so that we, too, can overcome?
Part III: Life Application
The Bible is God’s inspired Word for all time. It is not limited to either the time or cultures in which it was written. Thus, it still has power to transform lives today. As you prepare for this lesson in your specific culture, reflect on the impact of the Bible in your part of the world today. Ask the class to share an experience in which they have been transformed by God’s Word and have recognized its life-changing power in their lives. Here are some more specific questions that elaborate on these themes.
1. How do the prophecies of Scripture provide us with hope for the future, even in the context of last-day events? In what ways do these prophecies give us assurances of the promises of God and His ability to see His plan through to the end?
2. Share an experience from your life or a friend’s that testifies to the power of God’s Word to change the life of a person. In what ways did these changes take place, and how did others see the Holy Spirit’s power in action?
3. In what ways can you be the continuing witness of God’s power to transform your family, your neighborhood, or your town or city today? How can you share the Word of God in an effective way to cause change and prepare others to meet Jesus when He comes? Remember that we are His hands and feet, and what we communicate in actions and words will reflect on how others perceive God.
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Key Texts: Deut. 32:45–47; Gen. 49:8-12; Isa. 53:3-7; 1 Cor. 15:3-5, 51-55; Rom. 12:2.
Part I: Overview
In a world of media overload, we are increasingly being bombarded by ideas that compete for our attention and promise the newest trends to guide our lives. It has become more difficult in this environment of overstimulation to find quiet time with the Word of God. Some may even begin to wonder whether the Bible is still relevant in today’s fast-paced world. We need to be reminded of the injunction to “be still, and know that I am God” (Ps. 46:10) as a way to help us recognize that the Bible is still God’s greatest gift to communicate His plan of Redemption. There is no other book like it anywhere in the world.
A number of important elements make the Bible unique when compared to other religious books. Four elements, in particular, stand out in stark contrast to the philosophical and esoteric thoughts of the likes of Confucius, the Qur’an, and the Hindu sacred writings: (1) the Bible is comprised of up to 30 percent prophecy and prophetic literature; (2) the Bible is constituted in history, that is, it speaks of a God who acts in history; (3) the Bible events are placed in a spatial dimension of real geographical places, and (4) the Bible has the power to transform lives because of the God who speaks to us through His living word. Is it any wonder, then, that for centuries it has inspired the greatest works of music, art, and literature? This week we will study why the Bible is unique and unrivaled and remains so, even with the fast growth of technology and knowledge in the twenty-first century.
Part II: Commentary
Illustration
The great pyramids of Egypt tower over the modern city of Cairo. Excavations have revealed that they were built during the Old Kingdom with a sophisticated technology and knowledge of building that assumed mathematics and astronomy that was not thought to have existed before the Greeks. Until the Eiffel Tower was completed in Paris in 1889, the Great Pyramid was the tallest building in the world for thousands of years. Today, archaeologists still grapple with the logistics and enormity of this accomplishment. Moses arrived in ancient Egypt hundreds of years after the Great Pyramid was erected and was educated to be the future king of this greatest of empires. Yet, “By faith Moses, when he became of age, refused to be called the son of Pharaoh’s daughter” (Heb. 11:24, NKJV).
Scripture
The last words of Moses to the people he led to the Promised Land were these: “ ‘Set your hearts on all the words which I testify among you today, which you shall command your children to be careful to observe—all the words of this law’ ” (Deut. 32:46, NKJV). Setting to heart is an expression used in the Bible to describe the internalization and depositing of God’s Word within the heart. Moses emphasizes this idea when he instructs that children especially should be commanded to follow the instructions or law of God. This law is more important than anything, for “it is your life” (Deut. 32:47).
Discuss with your class how they deal with the distractions all around them and maintain a living relationship with Christ through His Word. Ask the class to assess how much time they spend on certain activities every day (answering emails, texting, social media, television, work, family, devotions). Observe that those activities that we spend most of our time on are often those that are most important in our lives. What intentional steps are your class members taking to pass on their Christian experience to their children? Why is this living legacy so important in the time in which we live?
Scripture
The Bible is filled with places wherein God revealed Himself. Among some of the more memorable spots are Mount Moriah when Abraham was about to slay Isaac (Gen. 22:2), the burning bush on Mount Horeb in Sinai (Exod. 3:1-4), the Red Sea through which Israel escaped on dry land (Exod. 14:1-30), and Capernaum where so many of the healing miracles of Jesus occurred. This pattern of incorporating a spatial dimension into the events described actually sets the Bible apart from most other holy writings (the entire Qur’an, for example, contains fewer geographical designations than those found in Genesis 1–20 alone). The Bible contains references to hundreds of cities and lands, including references to specific mountains, bodies of water, deserts and wildernesses, regions, and states. There are times when the geography is a crucial element that gives added meaning and dimension to an event.
Bethlehem is one example of how the Bible’s geography is important to our understanding of biblical history. In Hebrew, Bethlehem means “the house of bread.” It was in Bethlehem that Ruth and Boaz met and were married. There, they had a son named Obed, who had a son named Jesse. Jesse became the father of David, who would later establish a dynasty of kings that would rule in Jerusalem for hundreds of years until the destruction of the temple (Ruth 4:13-17; Matt. 1:5, 6). When Samuel came to anoint a new king, he came to Bethlehem where God directed him to anoint David. Then, 700 years before the birth of Jesus, Micah 5:2 predicts that the Messiah will be born in Bethlehem, which is in Judea. So, it should not surprise us that God sends Jesus, “the bread of life” (John 6:33-51) to be born in Bethlehem, the house of bread. Born of the Holy Spirit to Mary, Jesus brings the fullness of the gospel to the world over which He will one day reign as King of kings forever.
Ask the class what other significant insights can be gained from understanding the geography and place names of surrounding historical events in the Bible. For example, what was the relationship between Abraham’s encounter with God on Mount Moriah and Christ’s death in the same vicinity nearly two thousand years later?
Illustration
Jose grew up in the inner city of Detroit, Michigan. At the age of eleven he was already getting involved in a local gang. He walked the walk and talked the talk. His parents were worried about where he was heading. One day they received an advertisement for a vegetarian cooking school. Jose’s father was a cook in a local restaurant and began to attend with his wife. In one of the meetings, a Vacation Bible School was announced, and Jose and his sisters began to attend. Jose had never heard much about the Bible. He was very intrigued by the story of Joshua and his conquest of Canaan under God’s leadership. He learned that God was a powerful God and could overcome the enemies of His people. Jose wanted to know more and began to read the Bible. Soon he was enrolled in the local Pathfinder club. His parents noticed major changes. Jose’s language changed. His clothing changed. Even the way he walked changed. Six months later, Jose requested baptism. His family was amazed at the change in Jose’s life. They wanted what Jose was experiencing. After studying the Bible together with the pastor, the whole family was baptized on a Sabbath morning. The power of God’s Word had transformed their lives.
Scripture
Josiah was eight years old when he became king of Judah. The Bible says that his grandfather Manasseh served the Canaanite gods, engaging in spiritualism and its associated sexual perversions, along with astrology. Manasseh even sacrificed his own son. He led his people into terrible apostasy, for he “seduced them to do more evil than did the nations whom the LORD destroyed before the children of Israel” (2 Kings 21:9). From Josiah’s genes and upbringing, we might expect that Judah would be doomed to the same fate as under King Manasseh, but instead, the Bible says that Josiah “did that which was right in the sight of the LORD, and walked in all the way of David his father, and turned not aside to the right hand or to the left” (2 Kings 22:2). What made the difference?—the discovery and reading of God’s Word, Josiah’s deep repentance, and his actions to restore all of Israel to the right worship of God. Excavations in Judah covering this time period have revealed a temple at Arad with two altars and standing stones in the Most Holy Place that represented more than one deity. This temple was destroyed at the end of the seventh century, which many scholars have attributed to the work of Josiah. Because of this great reformation, God spared Judah and Jerusalem for some time and withheld His judgment until some 35 years later. God promised, “Thine eyes shall not see all the evil which I will bring upon this place” (2 Kings 22:20). After reading 2 Kings 21:2–9, ask the class how this description of Judah compares with the challenges of evil in this world today. How can Scripture transform our lives so that we, too, can overcome?
Part III: Life Application
The Bible is God’s inspired Word for all time. It is not limited to either the time or cultures in which it was written. Thus, it still has power to transform lives today. As you prepare for this lesson in your specific culture, reflect on the impact of the Bible in your part of the world today. Ask the class to share an experience in which they have been transformed by God’s Word and have recognized its life-changing power in their lives. Here are some more specific questions that elaborate on these themes.
1. How do the prophecies of Scripture provide us with hope for the future, even in the context of last-day events? In what ways do these prophecies give us assurances of the promises of God and His ability to see His plan through to the end?
2. Share an experience from your life or a friend’s that testifies to the power of God’s Word to change the life of a person. In what ways did these changes take place, and how did others see the Holy Spirit’s power in action?
3. In what ways can you be the continuing witness of God’s power to transform your family, your neighborhood, or your town or city today? How can you share the Word of God in an effective way to cause change and prepare others to meet Jesus when He comes? Remember that we are His hands and feet, and what we communicate in actions and words will reflect on how others perceive God.