Christian Education
This page contains the content of Christian Education post. It is one of the ways we use to extend the teaching ministry of the Church to our members, our friends and the world. It is a supplement to the teaching that goes on in classrooms, meetings, and other gatherings of the Church where Christian theology, doctrine, and instruction is taught. We are welcomed and encouraged to comment on any of the messages by clicking the “SS Preview” link you want to comment on, going to the bottom of the page and filling in and Submitting the Reply at the end of the message. Most of the post will have audio playback so you can listen to as well as read them. We hope you are blessed, enlighten and inspired through our Christian Education forums and invite you to join us at any of our meetings.
02
Aug '18
SS Preview August 5, 2018
02
Aug '18
Greeting Members and Friends
It time once again for our weekly Sunday School preview so thanks for joining me and welcome back. The Summer Quarter entitled “Justice in the New Testament” focuses on ways God demonstrates His justice and ways His people should follow His example.
The August unit is entitled “Paul Teaches about New Life in Christ” and has four lessons that offer Paul’s teachings about just and merciful behaviors. Those who live the new life in Christ are called to imitate God’s just and merciful nature through their actions toward others, including their enemies.
This Sunday’s lesson is entitled “God’s Justice” or “Equity For All”. In this week’s lesson, Apostle Paul addresses the question of God’s fairness when it comes to sin. His main point is twofold. The first one is that all sin will be judged regardless of rather there was a written law that was transgressed or not. He makes the point that all people are accountable to God for their action. Even the Mosaic Law does not detail every little action a person does. But it gives the board outline as to how we should order our lives.
Jesus said all the Law could be summed up in how we should love God and our neighbor as ourselves. Paul indicates that people know this instinctively and will be judged accordingly. The second point he makes is that knowing what to do is not an excuse for not doing what one knows. This applies to both those who have the Law and those who do not. God is just and fair. It all depends on what one seeks and how they go about it.
A person can be godly and seek eternal glory and life with or without the knowledge of the Law of Moses. And a person can just as well seek unrighteousness and wickedness with or without the Law. The bottom line is that those who know to do good and does not do it regardless of whether they were informed by the Law or by their conscience, it is sin. And all sin will be judged by God. Well, that’s all for this week’s preview. Be sure to join us in Sunday School this week for a fuller discussion of this lesson and the general topic of Justice in the New Testament. So, until then
Grace and peace
Pastor Jordan
19
Jul '18
SS Preview July 22, 2018
19
Jul '18
Greeting Members and Friends
It time once again for our weekly Sunday School preview so thanks for joining me and welcome back. The Summer Quarter entitled “Justice in the New Testament” focuses on ways God demonstrates His justice and ways His people should follow His example. The July unit is entitled “Jesus Calls for Justice and Mercy,” has five lessons that explore Jesus’ teachings on God’s justice in the books of Matthew and Luke. Included is Jesus’ demand for leaders to practice justice as well as to understand the universality of God’s justice and mercy.
This Sunday’s lesson is entitled “Entering God’s Kingdom” or “Come In”. In this week’s lesson, Jesus is asked about the number of people who shall be saved. In His response Jesus emphasizes the importance of the effort a person makes to enter the kingdom. The lack of such effort is why many shall desire entrance but shall be denied. Jesus warns of what I would describe as “casual Christianity”. Those who sought to enter but were denied were acquainted with Christ, but were not committed to Him nor got to know Him.
They were like guest to a party who came to the party to eat and drink but never understood what the party was for or the person responsible for the party. And because they attended the parties, they thought that alone qualified them to be friends of the host. But the host never got to know them and they never got to know the host. So, when they made a request to enter His home, the host had no idea who they were.
Today, many come to Church occasionally or as a matter of practice or habit and some perform this or that duty, task or function but these things alone only provide causal status. It is the deep abiding care and concern for Christ and His Church from which all of a person’s good works derive that makes that person someone Jesus knows and receives.
Jesus said that some people who people think shall enter will not enter and others who people think will not enter shall enter. So much depends on a person’s commitment to get to know God through Christ and His will for their lives and their effort in fulfilling that will. Well, that’s all for this week’s preview. Be sure to join us in Sunday School this week for a fuller discussion of this lesson and the general topic of Justice in the New Testament. So, until then
Grace and peace
Pastor Jordan
05
Jul '18
SS Preview July 8, 2018
05
Jul '18
Greeting Members and Friends
It time once again for our weekly Sunday School preview so thanks for joining me and welcome back. The Summer Quarter entitled “Justice in the New Testament” focuses on ways God demonstrates His justice and ways His people should follow His example. The July unit is entitled “Jesus Calls for Justice and Mercy,” has five lessons that explore Jesus’ teachings on God’s justice in the books of Matthew and Luke. Included is Jesus’ demand for leaders to practice justice as well as to understand the universality of God’s justice and mercy. This Sunday’s lesson is entitled “Jesus Criticizes Unjust Leaders” or “Hypocrites!”.
In this week’s lesson, Jesus teaches us the importance of being an example of what we teach others and of emphasizing one thing while ignoring others. Jesus teaches this lesson as he points out to His disciples the hypocrisy of the scribes and pharisees teaching and practice. There are people in the church who love and desire the honor and praise of men. Jesus said that there are those who do tell others what to do but do not do them themselves. Not only do they not practice what they teach others to do, but they do what they do to be seen like they are something they are not. This is the definition of a hypocrite which means to mask or conceal one’s true identity.
It addition to that, Jesus said that they emphasize the small matters while ignoring more important matters. He used the proverb to “strain gnats and swallow camels”. Both are unclean yet they are careful to avoid something small as a gnat but swallow something large like a camel. While tithing is important and shouldn’t be ignored, matters of justice and mercy and faith are of greater importance yet they did the first, but not the second. For us today, we must be careful to observe all things and not just the things we want to observe or are easy or convenient to observe. If God said to observe it, then nothing should be ignored or discounted as optional or unimportant. We are not allowed to pick and choose which commands to obey and follow.
Finally, Jesus said to start cleaning from the inside and it will make the outside clean. If we work from our heart to do what is right and please God, the outside of what people see of us will take care of itself. We must always live to please God and never to please men or to be seen of men. Well, that’s all for this week’s preview. Be sure to join us in Sunday School this week for a fuller discussion of this lesson and the general topic of Justice in the New Testament. So, until then
Grace and peace
Pastor Jordan
28
Jun '18
SS Preview July 1, 2018
28
Jun '18
Greeting Members and Friends
It time once again for our weekly Sunday School preview so thanks for joining me and welcome back. The Summer Quarter entitled “Justice in the New Testament” focuses on ways God demonstrates His justice and ways His people should follow His example. The July unit is entitled “Jesus Calls for Justice and Mercy,” has five lessons that explore Jesus’ teachings on God’s justice in the books of Matthew and Luke. Included is Jesus’ demand for leaders to practice justice as well as to understand the universality of God’s justice and mercy.
This Sunday’s lesson is entitled “Parable of the Unforgiving Servant” or “To Forgive and Be Forgiven”. In this week’s lesson, Jesus teaches us the importance of mercy and forgiveness. Mercy and forgiveness is not something people easily do and is contrary to human nature. People are so busy and use to trying to get ahead and keeping what they have, until they have little tolerance for anything that get in the way of that or helping others to maintain or get ahead.
Mercy can be described as the act of postponing, delaying or declining to impose an act that will have negative consequences upon an individual or group even though one has the power and/or right to do so. Forgiveness releases a person from the debt or injury they caused to or inflicted upon another person. Both of these attributes are divine in origin and are required in the people of God. If fact, they are so essential that salvation cannot be received without them. Jesus uses a parable to illustrate this point.
In the parable, the first man represents our huge debt to God that is impossible for us to pay and God’s willingness by His mercy and grace to forgive us our debt. The second man represents our fellow man who is indebted to us. The major difference between the amount of the two debts comes from who has been offended. For a man to offend another man is one thing, but for man to offend God is not even close to being on the same level. This is why the first debt is so much greater than the second and makes the fact that the first man wouldn’t forgive the second man so grievous.
Therefore, Jesus is teaching us that our offense against God is so great that we can’t pay it and no matter what our fellow man’s offense is against us it’s not as great as ours against God. Furthermore, if we desire God to forgive us then we must forgive others as a condition for forgiveness. There are some pretty awful things one man can do to another man. But as awful as all these things are nothing rises to the level of offense of man against God. For man is only a fellow creature, but God to the creator and sustainer of them both.
Judgement is therefore left to God, not us, to punish or have mercy upon the man that has offended both Him and his fellow man. We must defer to God’s judgement by having mercy and forgiveness for what our fellow man does to us. Finally, Jesus taught us to pray by asking God to forgive us in the same manner or as we forgive everyone else. Well, that’s all for this week’s preview. Be sure to join us in Sunday School this week for a fuller discussion of this lesson and the general topic of Justice in the New Testament. So, until then
Grace and peace
Pastor Jordan
14
Jun '18
SS Preview June 17, 2018
14
Jun '18
Greeting Members and Friends
It time once again for our weekly Sunday School preview so thanks for joining me and welcome back. The Summer Quarter entitled “Justice in the New Testament” focuses on ways God demonstrates His justice and ways His people should follow His example. The June unit is entitled “God is Just and Merciful” and has four sessions from the gospels of Matthew and Luke. This Sunday’s lesson is entitled “Jesus Teaches About Justice” or “More than Lip Service”.
This lesson is about placing the traditions, laws and rules of man before the commandments of God. When faced with the choice between civil or human law and God’s divine or moral law, we must always choose God’s law. Increasingly, the laws people are enacting reflect the will of man and not the will of God. People are allowing their own preferences and feelings to displace any obligation to uphold Biblical principles when crafting new law. When the scribes and pharisees called Jesus out for allowing His disciples to eat with unwashed hands that violated the traditions of the elders, he called them out for violating God’s law on how they treated their parents.
Jesus didn’t deny his disciples were transgressing the tradition of the elders which they placed a high priority on. But a transgression of a tradition of elders is not a sin. While some traditions are good and well-intended, they don’t have the force or weight of divine law and are not subject to divine judgement. Only man’s judgement applies to a manmade law or tradition. Jesus on the other hand pointed out to His accusers that they crafted a tradition that allowed them to break a God-given law to avoid honoring their parents. This tradition allowed them to take resources needed by their parents and set them aside if they claimed they were for a sacrifice or devoted to God. They got around God’s law by coming up with a law or tradition of their own making. He said that they talked a good talk, but did not walk what they talked.
Laws that allow perverted sexual relations, that put profits before people and the environment, enrich the wealthy at the expense of the poor and needy, that disproportionally impact or target a group of people are laws that disregard God’s imperative to love God and our neighbor as ourselves. And just to take this where it rightfully belongs, the spirit or heart of a law is even more important than the letter of the law. If we show up for church on Sunday, we might be able to say we remembered the sabbath day. But the way in which we did it could very easily violate the spirit of the law if we didn’t want to come, got there late, didn’t participate, had our mind our other people, places and things, placed our change and left overs in the treasury of God and came out of a sense of obligation whether than one of worship and gratitude.
God isn’t impressed by what we say or the motions we go through just so we can say we did something. God looks at the total reason why and how we do what we do to determine if it was worthy of His praise and glory. Well, that’s all for this week’s preview. Be sure to join us in Sunday School this week for a fuller discussion of this lesson and the general topic of Justice in the New Testament. So, until then
Grace and peace
Pastor Jordan
07
Jun '18
SS Preview June 10, 2018
07
Jun '18
Greeting Members and Friends
It time once again for our weekly Sunday School preview so thanks for joining me and welcome back. The Summer Quarter entitled “Justice in the New Testament” focuses on ways God demonstrates His justice and ways His people should follow His example. The June unit is entitled “God is Just and Merciful” and has four sessions from the gospels of Matthew and Luke. This Sunday’s lesson is entitled “Parables of God’s Just Kingdom” or “You Reap What You Sow”.
This lesson examines a few parables Jesus used to illustrate the kingdom of heaven. A parable is a kind of riddle that must be probed to understand the meaning or answer the parable is intended to convey. In the first parable in the lesson, Jesus tells of a man who planted good seed in his field and an enemy later comes and sows weeds in the same field. Later, when the wheat appeared so did the weeds. His servants wanted to remove the weeds, but he forbade them because he was concerned they would damage the wheat while rooting out the weeds. So he let them both grow and during the harvest he would separate them then.
The disciples didn’t understand the meaning of this parable or riddle so Jesus explains it in Matthew 13:34-43 which is part of the daily reading. I encourage you to take time and read it. The other two parables each mention something small that has a great effect in proportion to its size. A mustard seed is very tiny but can produce trees large enough for birds to rest in. Leaven or yeast in a small amount able to cause the whole lump to rise. Jesus didn’t explain these, but both of them seem to indicate the growing influence and reach the gospel will have on the world although it starts with Him and a few disciples.
The bible says Jesus use of parables were a preferred method of teaching. No one really knows the meaning of the parable like the one who tells the story. A person can say what he or she thinks it means, but unless the parable teller confirms our belief of the meaning, we can’t be 100 percent sure we understand. This is why to fully and truly understand the kingdom of God a person must continuously seek God for the answers to the mysteries of life and the kingdom of God. This is achieved by daily prayer and devotion, attending teaching sessions like Sunday School, Bible Study and BTU and worshipping God in Spirit and in truth.
It is God’s desire to give His people the answers to the questions of life. Therefore, God has hidden the way of life so that only those who seek truth and life, His people, will find it. Well, that’s all for this week’s preview. Be sure to join us in Sunday School this week for a fuller discussion of this lesson and the general topic of Justice in the New Testament. So, until then
Grace and peace
Pastor Jordan
31
May '18
SS Preview June 3, 2018
31
May '18
Greeting Members and Friends
It time once again for our weekly Sunday School preview so thanks for joining me and welcome back. The Summer Quarter entitled “Justice in the New Testament” focuses on ways God demonstrates His justice and ways His people should follow His example. The June unit is entitled “God is Just and Merciful” and has four sessions from the gospels of Matthew and Luke that teach us that the letter of the law must not conflict or interfere with mercy and justice as a practical matter.
This Sunday’s lesson is entitled “Justice And Sabbath Laws” or “Compliance versus Compassion”. This lesson is about what is and is not permitted to do on the Sabbath. First we must understand that the Sabbath rest in one of the things that define and distinguishes God and His people from everyone else. It has its beginning in creation and was commanded as part of the ten commandments. It was and still is to be taken very seriously as something that God’s people should observe. The point Jesus makes in the lesson is that human need and compassion takes precedence over strict observance of a command. When two of God’s laws appear to be in conflict, the law of love is the higher law.
In both instances, the plucking of corn and the healing of the sick and suffering were acts that violate the strict notion of doing or engaging in a form of work on the Sabbath. In fact, both of these actions could have been postponed until the next day. But in postponing them, the suffering would have needlessly continued when it could have been alleviated right here and now on the Sabbath. Jesus chose to eliminate the suffering to make a point that the time to love and help people in need takes precedence over what day and time it is. Things that can be put off because of the Sabbath should be put off, but if something is not postponed as a way of showing love, compassion or mercy there is no violation of the command to rest on the Sabbath. Today, many Christians have little or no reverence for the Sabbath. There is little or nothing they choose to postpone because of the Sabbath.
The way we as Christians choose to observe the Sabbath is sending a message to our family members, our neighbors and friends and the rest of the world all of whom are watching us about our respect and reverence for God. Jesus was not giving us permission not to observe the Sabbath, but the authority to use wise judgement in balancing the command of God to have no other God before Him and to love our neighbor as our self. Well, that’s all for this week’s preview. Be sure to join us in Sunday School this week for a fuller discussion of this lesson and the general topic of Justice in the New Testament. So, until then
Grace and peace
Pastor Jordan
24
May '18
SS Preview May 27, 2018
24
May '18
Greeting Members and Friends
It time once again for our weekly Sunday School preview so thanks for joining me and welcome back. The Spring Quarter entitled “Acknowledging God” focuses on ways God’s people have acknowledged His Greatness. The May unit is entitled “Give Praise to God,” and has four sessions that emphasize the people’s response by bringing offerings and dedicating their lives to God’s work. Three of the responses are found in the books of Exodus, Leviticus, and 2 Corinthians. The unit concludes with one session drawn from the books of Psalms and Hebrews that rejoices in God’s reconciling action on behalf of the people. This Sunday’s lesson is entitled “Rejoicing In Restoration” or “More Than Good”.
This lesson is about turning to and seeking the God who has already turned to us. He stands ready and willing to receive us when we turn to Him. He is willing, able and ready to help us in every way we need help. The Psalmist talks about magnifying the Lord and telling others about how wonderful He is. He describes God as both a protector and provider for those who trust and serve Him.
The last two verses from Hebrews describes how Jesus is the perfect priest and mediator for mankind. In that He is completely human, He is able to identify with humanity and humanity able to identify with Him. He knows what it is to suffer and to be tempted and how to deal with both. He provides for us the perfect example and offered the perfect atonement for our sins.
This is why we can rejoice because of what God has done in Christ and continues to do for us. We should reflect his goodness and mercy in every aspect of our lives and in such a way as to let others get to know the God of our salvation. Well, that’s all for this week’s preview. Be sure to join us in Sunday School this week for a fuller discussion of this lesson and the general topic of Give Praise to God. So, until then
Grace and peace
Pastor Jordan
17
May '18
SS Preview May 20, 2018
17
May '18
Greeting Members and Friends
It time once again for our weekly Sunday School preview so thanks for joining me and welcome back. The Spring Quarter entitled “Acknowledging God” focuses on ways God’s people have acknowledged His Greatness. The May unit is entitled “Give Praise to God,” and has four sessions that emphasize the people’s response by bringing offerings and dedicating their lives to God’s work. Three of the responses are found in the books of Exodus, Leviticus, and 2 Corinthians. The unit concludes with one session drawn from the books of Psalms and Hebrews that rejoices in God’s reconciling action on behalf of the people.
This Sunday’s lesson is entitled “Remembering With Joy” or “Creating an Equitable Economy”. Last Sunday’s lesson was about bringing the “first fruit” as a way of honoring God. Today’s lesson is also about honoring God, but instead of with first fruits it is by how well we observe the Lord’s sabbaths. In today’s text, Israel was commanded to allow the land to rest in the seventh year and eat from whatever the land produced of itself. They were not to plant or harvest anything, but to use only what they needed. Furthermore, in the 50th year, they were to return every one to their own property and be released from all debt. God is a God of faith. This is another way of acknowledging our dependence on God.
God lets us know that the land is His and we are simply using what He allows us to use. He is the one that causes it to be productive. By giving the land a sabbath, they were doing what the landowner who is God said to do with His land and trusting God to provide for their needs without the need to plant or harvest. By returning the property, God intended for everyone to be able to start fresh and for no one to become too greedy or large by keeping all the property of their brothers. People who emphasize possessions tend to forget that they are the creature and not the creator.
We should never seek to accumulate things beyond what is needed to provide for our family. We should always remember that the earth is the Lord’s and everything in it. God allows us to use it to sustain our existence. If and when we begin to attempt to hoard any part of it and heap it to ourselves, then we have replaced the creator with the created. Instead of worshipping the Creator, we are worshipping the created. Well, that’s all for this week’s preview. Be sure to join us in Sunday School this week for a fuller discussion of this lesson and the general topic of Give Praise to God. So, until then
Grace and peace
Pastor Jordan
10
May '18
SS Preview May 13, 2018
10
May '18
Greeting Members and Friends
It time once again for our weekly Sunday School preview so thanks for joining me and welcome back. The Spring Quarter entitled “Acknowledging God” focuses on ways God’s people have acknowledged His Greatness. The May unit is entitled “Give Praise to God,” and has four sessions that emphasize the people’s response by bringing offerings and dedicating their lives to God’s work. Three of the responses are found in the books of Exodus, Leviticus, and 2 Corinthians. The unit concludes with one session drawn from the books of Psalms and Hebrews that rejoices in God’s reconciling action on behalf of the people.
Sunday’s lesson is entitled “Bringing First Fruits” or “Reasons to Give”. One of the stumbling stones to saving faith in Christ is giving. Whether it’s giving of time, resources, money, gifts or talents or in any other form, people fail to give because of lack of faith in God and selfishness. Bringing the First Fruits is like allowing someone to do something first before you do. For instance, wearing a new suit before you do, serving a meal or biting a sandwich before you, living in a new house or apartment before you do or holding a new born child before you do. You may have been entitled to do all these things first, but your love and honor for God is so great, that you always give that privilege to Him first.
This is what first fruits are all about. God is the one who has made everything possible for us to enjoy. First fruits are our way of saying thank you God for allowing me to have this. Not only do we honor God with these fruits before we partake of them ourselves, but we honor Him with only the best of them and never the second-hand or left overs. For God only the best will do. The text tells us how Israel was not to eat of their harvest until they brought a sheaf or bundle of what they gathered to the priest to offer it before the Lord. Likewise, we today should bring an offering of all our increase to the Lord as a way of acknowledging the role He had in making it possible.
The last verse in the lesson text reminds us not to use up everything on ourselves, but to think of others. We shouldn’t glean the corners of our fields or blessings. God instructed Israel to leave the corners unharvested so they would be easily accessible for others who may need the food. But we should always bring and give a blessing to those who may need it. When we give a mission offering or make a donation designed to help someone in need, it is a way of not gleaning our fields. In conclusion, don’t settle for nothing but giving God our first and very best before we enjoy any of what He gives us or allows us to have. If or when we do anything less, we have failed to understand the honor, glory and worthiness of God. Well, that’s all for this week’s preview. Be sure to join us in Sunday School this week for a fuller discussion of this lesson and the general topic of Give Praise to God. So, until then
Grace and peace
Pastor Jordan
