Focal Passage: Genesis 13:5-11, 14-18 

Families often face difficult crossroads of conflict. Problems can arise when we only look after our own interests. Abram and Lot responded to a family squabble by wisely deciding to part ways. However, Lot’s decision, out of greed and self-conceit, would result in life-altering consequences. 

Identify the source of conflict. News flash: families fight! It is a reality of life today as it was in Genesis 13. God had so blessed Abram’s family in Canaan that Abram and his nephew Lot’s possessions became too much for them to coexist in the same region. This caused quarreling between the herdsmen of the two patriarchs over available grazing land.  [Read more…]

Focal Passages: Genesis 4:1-12 

We begin a new six-week study on family relationships and how they are to pattern our connection with the community at large. We start with the tragedy of Cain and Abel. This story provides deep insights into the human condition and the importance of taking the responsibility to look after our family members and our neighbors in the community and the world. 

God has created each individual with unique gifts and traits. When Cain was born, Eve declared that she had obtained a male child with the Lord’s help. This statement harkens back to Genesis 3:15 when God provided the first ray hope for mankind after the Fall to sin and death. God promised that one of Eve’s descendants would crush the head of the serpent. Eve hoped this deliverance would come immediately through her first-born son. 

Cain, however, literally means, “acquired,” and the sinful seeds of possession and self-reliance shone forth in this name. Even when we obtain something from the Lord’s blessing, we are easily tempted to claim ownership. I John 2:16 identifies the “pride in one’s possessions” to be one of the sinful desires of the flesh. Cain’s life was marked by the fleshly desire to obtain significance apart from God and humble faith.  [Read more…]

Focal Passage: Philippians 1:1-11 

The final study on God’s purpose for His people focuses on the importance of ministry partnerships and glorifying God through consistent and lifelong service to the kingdom of God.  

Give thanks for ministry partnership. The book of Philippians is often called the Letter of Joy, but Paul wrote it while a prisoner. Philippi was a city in Macedonia (northern Greece) that had a thriving church despite poverty and persecution. Paul spoke highly of the Philippians and other Macedonian churches saying, “their abundant joy and their extreme poverty overflowed in a wealth of generosity on their part.” (II Corinthians 8:2)  

Paul had served and suffered with this congregation and he expressed his deep gratitude to them in this letter.  He witnessed how God used them for great acts of generosity and ministry despite their difficult circumstances.  In these initial comments of this letter, Paul illustrates the great joy found in the fellowship of service in Christian ministry. God’s purpose for believers is exemplified through intentional, incarnational ministry. We live in a hyper-individualized society where many believe they can demonstrate their Christian faith simply by watching sermons, listening to Christian music, maintaining private devotion or viewing Christian based videos. [Read more…]

Focal Passages: Galatians 6:1-10 

As we live out God’s will for our lives through embodying the fruit of the Holy Spirit, God’s purpose expresses itself in how we relate to others, especially those who belong to the household of faith. 

Restore and share burdens. It’s easy for us to point fingers, gossip and quietly revel in the moral failures of others. Southern Baptists are experts at this, unfortunately. 

We might couch it in a concerning tone, or the ubiquitous phrase, “Bless his/her heart,” proceeding then to speak ill and stand indignant over others’ missteps.  [Read more…]

Focal Passage: Galatians 5:16-26 

What is God’s purpose for your life? Many Christians often worry over this question. The New Testament, however, is clear on God’s desire for the believer. Galatians 5:16-26 teaches that God calls Christ’s disciples to live a life in the Spirit and to turn away from walking in the desires of the Flesh.  

Walk by the Spirit and not the flesh. God’s purpose for believers is that we live by the Spirit rather than the flesh. This is God’s will for your life. In all of our decisions in life, we must live by the Spirit.  We must make decisions based on what will most glorify God rather than how it will most benefit ourselves. That is the difference. Living by the Spirit is a key theme of the New Testament.  [Read more…]

Focal Passages: Acts 3:14-26 

We have learned in the previous two lessons that humanity’s purpose has been tarnished to the degree that we cannot restore it ourselves. In this lesson we learn that only through the gospel of Jesus can that purpose be restored forever.    

Restoration comes through Jesus alone. Peter’s sermon in Acts 3 occurs after Peter and John encounter a beggar at the temple gate called Beautiful who has been lame since birth. Peter and John enter through a beautiful gate but witness a grotesque sight. The imagery here is unmistakable. The world that focuses on beauty, strength and power often overlooks weakness, infirmity and the ugliness of life.   [Read more…]

Focal Passages: Ecclesiastes 1:1-14 

We begin a six-week study on living a life focused on God’s purpose for our lives. To live a life of true meaning, everyone must first understand the futility of life without faith in God. 

Every human searches for meaning and significance. The problem is that we search in every way other than the one leading to lasting fulfillment. This week’s lesson illustrates the meaninglessness of living in a world devoid of God.  

Hustle and bustle and no purpose.  The opening verse of Ecclesiastes startles with the assertion that there is no meaning in life. This book serves as a philosophical questioning of the very meaning of life. Its tone from the outset presents a very negative picture, as Solomon asks the rhetorical question, “What does a person gain from all his efforts?” The answer is a resounding, “No!”   [Read more…]

Focal Passage: Jeremiah 36:4-8, 16-18; 45:1-5 

Jeremiah was a great prophet of the Lord. He was faithful to the end proclaiming God’s judgment on Judah in spite of constant rejection. Baruch proved to be a valuable friend, encourager and servant to the prophet during some of Jeremiah’s most difficult days.  

Faithfully represent those you serve. Jeremiah had become such a nuisance to the people of Judah that the king and his officials and the temple priests forbade the prophet from entering the temple anymore. Therefore, Jeremiah asked his friend and scribe Baruch to be his spokesman. Baruch must have known that this would most likely elicit the same negative response from those in power. Yet, he faithfully did all that Jeremiah asked him to do.  

Baruch believed in the Lord and knew that Jeremiah was God’s chosen instrument to speak His word for His people. God had called Baruch to be a faithful servant of the prophet and he fulfilled that role completely, regardless of the outcome.  [Read more…]

Focal Passages: Esther 3:1-9, 6:10-14 

This week’s lesson points to a secondary character in the book of Esther that serves as a cautionary tale.  Haman is the great villain of the story and teaches the dangers of allowing positions of power to serve one’s hubris and pride.    

Accept honors with humility.  Esther is the great narrative about how a Jewish young woman becomes queen of Persia and helps save her people from destruction.  Her uncle, Mordecai, helps and encourages her along the way.  Haman was placed by the king of Persia above all other officials, a group that included Mordecai.  Each day, as Haman was presented at court, all the officials would bow except Mordecai.  

Why did Mordecai refuse to pay homage to his superior? The clue to understand this is in Haman’s name.  He was the son of an Agagite. Agag was a dynastic, honorary title given to high-ranking Amalekites.  [Read more…]

Focal Passage: I Samuel 18:1-4, 19:1-4, 23:15-18 

David and Jonathan exemplify a close-knit friendship — as described in Proverbs 18:24 — in I Samuel. Jonathan, the son of King Saul, did not allow the animosity fostered by his father against David to spoil the devotion he had for his friend. Jonathan’s solidarity with the future king of Israel proved true regardless of the cultural and familial pressures surrounding him.  

Don’t stumble over role expectations. The first four verses of I Samuel 18 introduce the reader to Jonathan. He was a prince of Israel, the son of King Saul. The king kept David close at hand in the palace and a friendship quickly blossomed between David and Jonathan. In verse 4, Jonathan removed all the trappings of his princely office and gave them to David as a symbol of the covenant between the two men. [Read more…]