LHIM Weekly Bible Teaching

John 3:16, 17 God loves humanity and wants all to be saved.

Psalm 73:25-28 David viewed it as his responsibility and joy to spread the knowledge and praise of Yahweh.

Luke 4:17-18, 42-44

1 Corinthians 9:16; 2 Corinthians 5:14; Ephesians 6:19-20

Matthew 28:19-20; 2 Corinthians 5:15-21

Change my heart, O God; Make it ever true;

If love for Yahweh and His love for humanity are in your heart, you will have people in your life to tell about Him.

Psalm 106:19-23 Prayer is powerful because it moves the hand of the one who holds the world.

1 Chronicles 29:10-19 This model prayer begins with praise before moving to thanksgiving, and finally to petition.

1 Thessalonians 5:19-22 Scripture clearly commands us not to quench the spirit or despise prophecies. We take this seriously by making room for manifestations of the spirit during our service.

1 Corinthians 14:1-5, 13, 26-33 Tongues are unlearned foreign languages spoken to God. Tongues should always be interpreted in our gatherings. Whether tongues and interpretation or prophecy, everything should be done decently and in order so as to build up the congregation.

Hebrews 4:12 Powerful and effective – not merely a collection of ancient texts but has relevance and influence in the present. It penetrates deeply into a person’s being.

1 Thessalonians 2:13 It is transformative with the power to bring about spiritual discernment, conviction, and change in individuals.

Matthew 4:1-11 “It is written.”

Luke 24:27, 32, 44-46 Jesus did not use just personal testimony, rather the Scriptures.

2 Peter 1-4 All things related to life and godliness are within the Scriptures.

1 Peter 1:23-25 How powerful is this word? We are born again when we believe.

Acts 2:37, 41-42, 19:20; 20:18-32 We endeavor to copy what was done in the first century and not what others are doing today.

Psalm 19:7-11 The law, testimony, precepts, commandment, and judgments are all part of Scripture, and in this psalm, the parts represent the whole.

When you read the Scriptures with understanding, you are having an encounter with God.

Jeremiah 23:26-29

In the Bible, the word “church” (ἐκκλησία) does not refer to a building nor to the people of God in general, but to an assembly of God’s people—a congregation. This series is looking at the different aspects of what we do when we come together for worship on Sundays.

1 Corinthians 12:24-26 The members of Christ’s body should care for each other. When one member suffers, all suffer. When one member is honored, all rejoice.

Galatians 6:2 Having announcements is one way that we can help carry each other’s burdens.

Deuteronomy 12:4-7, 11-12, 17-19, 26-27; 16:17; 17:1 Offerings were Israel’s way of worshiping God. These provided sustenance for the priests and Levites as well as a sacred feast for the offeror’s family.

Mark 12:41-44 During the time of Christ, the Old Covenant system of giving was still in effect.

New covenant giving

For you created my innermost parts; You wove me in my mother’s womb. I will give thanks to You, because I am awesomely and wonderfully made.

We are meticulously created, which includes the ability to sing and make music.

Praise Yahweh! For it is good to sing praises to our God; for it is pleasant and a song of praise is fitting.

Praise Yahweh! Sing to Yahweh a new song, his praise in the assembly of the godly!

Community of worship

I lift up my eyes to the hills. From where does my help come?

We worship the Creator, not the creation.

On what were its bases sunk, or who laid its cornerstone, when the morning stars sang together and all the sons of God shouted for joy?

God’s creation sings, and we are part of that creation.

David brings the ark to Jerusalem and establishes praise and worship practices.

And when they had sung a hymn, they went out to the Mount of Olives.

Jesus and the disciples sang a hymn between the last super and the agony in the garden – demonstrates importance of singing in the assembly of the saints.

…but be filled with the Spirit, addressing one another in psalms and hymns and spiritual songs, singing and making melody to the Lord with your heart….

Paul instructs the church to sing.

“The strongest defense is a good offense.” LOVE is offensive, not defensive.

There is no fear in love; but perfect love casts out fear: because fear hath torment. He that fears is not made perfect in love. We love him, because He first loved us.

Have not I commanded thee? Be strong and of a good courage; be not afraid, neither be thou dismayed: for the LORD thy God is with thee whithersoever thou goest.

Examples of women who had fearless love

1 Samuel 25:1–39

2 Kings 4:8–37

Ruth 1:16–17

John 5:17

“My Father worketh hitherto, and I work.” God is at work in the world around us.

Verily, verily, I say unto you, The Son can do nothing of himself, but what he seeth the Father do: for what things soever he doeth, these also doeth the Son likewise. For the Father loveth the Son, and sheweth him all things that himself doeth: and He will shew him greater works than these, that ye may marvel. For as the Father raiseth up the dead, and quickeneth them; even so the Son quickeneth whom he will.

“For it is God which works in you both to will and to do of His good pleasure.”

We all function differently in the Body of Christ. Your walk may not look like everyone else’s, but your walk is vitally important. Let love propel you into the service and the future that God has ordained for you.

If God be for you, who can be against you?? Love Makes Us Fearless

The Question: “Does God accept me as I am?”

The Answer: “Yes, he does!”

God acted first. There was nothing we did that moved him to respond. All of us, like everyone else, can be recipients of God’s love by his grace alone. If we don’t come to God as we are, we are denying the truth of why God acted through his Son Jesus to save us in the first place.

Jesus doesn’t say, “Fix yourself,” and then come follow me. He invites his disciples to follow him as they are so that they can find peace and rest.

We need to be cleansed of our sins: both those done in the past and in the present. God promises to forgive us if we confess our sin. Hiding our sin only brings shame and further separation from God.

We can get washed by the blood of Jesus only if we come to God as we are and confess our sins openly and honestly.

Christ changes everything: you are no longer the same. You can come as you are, but you can’t leave as you were. You are “new”; let the old things be left behind.

What are you living for? What are you pursuing? Many would answer these questions with, “I just want to be happy.” But how can you become happy? Traditional pursuits of happiness via acquisition and detachment have given way to achieving happiness through therapy. Even if we are the most self-aware generation, happiness still seems to elude us, slipping right between our fingers like sand.

Rather than putting themselves first, the Apostle Paul encouraged the Christians in Corinth to put God and others first. This was especially important when it came to eating certain meats that had been offered in pagan sacrifices. (See also 1 Corinthians 8:6-13). In the end, whatever we do, we  should do all to the glory of God.

Leah offers a stark example of living for oneself, regardless of how that might affect others. Marginalized and badly treated, she set out to win her husband’s affection. In the competition with her sister, she fought relentlessly and ended up with the victory. Even so, winning and finding lasting happiness do not always go together.

David demonstrates a God-centered approach to handling difficult situations. Hunted and hiding, David still recognized that the one who fulfilled his purpose was God, the one deserving glory, the one to whom he offered praise—even amid hardship.

We too can act so that in everything, God may be glorified.

Our society is fixated on power. We ask, “Who has the power? Who is oppressed? How can we fix it?” But what does the Bible say about power? How does God use power?

The scene is a familiar one. Ahab the king wanted a piece of land owned by Naboth. However, Naboth didn’t want to sell. The queen found a solution that required the exercise of lethal power via deception and subterfuge. The incident aptly illustrates the typical power governments exercise to get what they want. Still, God gets the last word.

The Romans claimed to have absolute power over their subjects, especially low-status peasants and revolutionaries. Pontius Pilate, however, appears out maneuvered by his “subjects” who insist on Jesus’ execution. For his part, Jesus does not play power politics. He does not connive or conspire. He knows where the real power lies, and he freely submits to it.

The world’s wisdom and power are folly and weakness to God. What he accomplished through Christ is true wisdom and true power, but only to those who are called and who believe. What’s more, salvation is not exclusively available to the powerful and influential. In fact, those people are less likely to submit to God’s upside-down salvation program.

Matthew 27:32 Simon of Cyrene carried his cross.