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ScriptureStream episodes
- Challenges as Benchley Grows, Part 1Introduction
- Acts 15:36-41
- Things at Benchley have changed a lot since 1994!
In our new building, let’s continue to focus on Christ.- I Corinthians 14:26 – Authority for a church to assemble.
- Hebrews 10:25
- The building is not the goal. What we do in the building is the goal.
- Acts 25:23; 26:22
- Acts 16:25, 32 – It doesn’t matter where it was preached – the gospel is still the gospel.
We should foster closeness and brotherly love.- Hebrews 13:1 – Let love of the brethren continue.
- Acts 2:41 – 3,000 were added to their number!
- Acts 2:46 – They spent time together personally.
- Don’t limit the relationship to what happens in these four walls. Keep spending time with each other outside of services.
- Galatians 3:26-29
- I Corinthians 6:5-8 – There will always be opportunity for conflict, but we must let things go and move on.
- Acts 6:1, 7
- James 2:1-4
- Philemon 1:15-16 – We cannot allow outside or former differences to separate us in Christ.
45 min - Luke 13Luke 13
- Luke 13:1-5 – Jesus debunks the idea that bad things happening are a punishment for sin. Jesus is instead trying to reorient their minds toward repentance.
- Luke 13:6-9 – Our job here is to bear fruit. We must avoid complacency and work to bear fruit. When we don’t strive to bear fruit, we’re just “using up the ground.” God expects more from us than that.
- Luke 13:10-17
- Luke 13:16 – Jesus freed a Jew that was bound by Satan.
- Deuteronomy 5:12-15 – The Jews were supposed to be thinking about being freed from bondage on the Sabbath. Jesus freed the woman from bondage to Satan.
- John 8:34 – We have all been bound by Satan through sin.
- Luke 13:18-19 – The kingdom of God would start small but grow exponentially.
- Luke 13:22-32
- Luke 13:24 – Strive to enter. Don’t just be an interested Christian – be a committed Christian.
43 min - Want problems? Here are 4 ways to get them!Introduction
- Proverbs 19:3
- We make foolish decisions, then rage against the Lord!
- Bad things do happen to good people, but when we stray from God’s plan, we invite difficulties.
Make a lot of assumptions!- Job 4:7-8 – Job’s friends assumed he had sinned.
- Job 8:3-4
- Job 11:13-20
- Job 42:7-9
- Acts 21:27-32 – They almost murdered Paul because of an assumption.
- John 5:8-9, 16
- John 7:21-23 – They assumed Jesus was breaking the Sabbath with His miracles.
- Do we assume there are problems when there are not? Our imaginations can lead us down dark alleys. We have to be comfortable with, “I don’t know.”
Focus mainly on self.- II Timothy 3:1-2
- I Corinthians 8:8-13; 10:24 – Be willing to set your liberty aside for the sake of offending your brother.
- James 3:13-16 – If you want trouble, have selfish ambition.
- A self-centered life is a small life full of misery.
- Luke 9:23
Keep a running list of wrongs.- I Kings 21:1-4, 8-10, 15-16 – Jezebel killed Naboth because he “wronged” Ahab.
- Esther 5:11-13 – Haman could not let go of being “wronged” by Mordecai.
- Ephesians 4:31-32
React quickly no matter what.- Matthew 16:21-23 – Early on, Peter moved much too quickly. Despite good intentions, he was working against God’s plan.
- John 18:10-11
- Proverbs 18:13
- James 1:19 – Be swift to hear, slow to speak.
25 min - Identity and VisionIntroduction
- Matthew 22:36-40
Us – what kind of people do we want to be?- Psalms 128:1-6 – A beautiful picture of a family that fears the Lord.
- Maybe we are Christians that love to travel or love animals or love to be social or …
Aquila and PriscillaAhab and JezebelPartners in God’s work – Acts 18:1-3, 24-26Partners in Satan’s work – I Kings 16:30-31; 21:25Willing to sacrifice – Romans 16:3-5Willing to sacrifice others – I Kings 21:8-10A sanctuary for God’s people – I Corinthians 16:19A sanctuary for Satan’s people – I Kings 18:3-4, 19; 19:2Our legacy – What values do we want to pass on to our children / grandchildren?JeroboamPsalms 78:1-8I Kings 12:28-29 – He launches Israel into idolatry.The psalmist is expressing God’s desire that parents teach their kids about Him.His son Hadab followed in his missteps.Judges 2:10; II Timothy 1:5Proverbs 7Proverbs 31“Dressed as a harlot and cunning of heart”Proverbs 31:10-12 – “a woman who fears the Lord”Our goal – In the end, what will make us feel like we had a successful life?- Matthew 25:34 – This is the ultimate goal.
- II Timothy 4:6-8 – When we get to the end, can we say we have kept the faith and fought a good fight?
- If we share the end goal, we should be able to share the path to that goal.
- Proverbs 15:16-17
45 min - Preparing My Kids to Serve GodIntroduction
- Judges 2:10
- What can we do to prepare our children to know God?
Read and discuss the Bible regularly at home.- Romans 10:17
- Proverbs 1:7 – We must be humble enough to hear God’s wisdom.
- II Timothy 3:1-2
- James 4:4 – Teach children it is not their job to always fit in.
- It is your job to teach your children these important truths.
- Take the lead in setting aside time and making this a priority in your family.
Joyfully put God first in our lives and schedules.- Mark 4:18-19
- What are we teaching kids if everyone’s lives revolve around the kids’ activities?
- II Timothy 4:10 – Demas loved the present world and deserted Paul. Will our children desert the Lord one day?
- II Timothy 3:10
- Psalms 95:6-7
SHOW them what it looks like to serve God.- I Corinthians 4:14-17 – They saw Paul’s example. That was a big part of his teaching.
- James 5:16 – Do I confess my wrongs? Do I apologize?
- Ephesians 6:1-3 – Don’t let modern culture convince you the word “no” is wrong.
- Mark 10:21 – Why did Jesus make this man sad? Because He loved him and told the man what he needed to hear, even though it made him sad.
- Proverbs 3:21
- We need to call on our kids when they are in the wrong.
- We need to love them enough to be firm!
- Colossians 3:15-16 – Christians are to be thankful people. Are we teaching our kids to be grumpy, grouchy people?
25 min - Luke 12Luke 12How to study
- Context
- Word definitions
- Dictionaries
- Textual
- Study with an open mind, objective thinking
Hostility- Jesus didn’t avoid it. See Matthew 23; John 10.
- Sometimes it is appropriate to argue in an environment where people are getting hostile.
Luke 12:1 – Leaven of hypocrisy- Hypocrisy, like leaven, spreads – Galatians 2:13
Luke 12:4-7 – Fear, stand in awe of – priorities- We must have our priorities right and fear God rather than man.
Luke 12:8-9 – Confess – not pre-baptism confession- Confession is not a one-time act – it is a continuous lifestyle.
- Confession means speaking the same thing as someone else.
Luke 12:10 – The unforgivable sin- See Matthew 12:32; Mark 3:28-30.
- Blasphemy means to speak against someone.
- In the first century, blasphemy against the Holy Spirit meant seeing Jesus work a miracle, admitting He did it, then saying He did it because He had a demon.
- See I Timothy 1:13; II Peter 3:9; I John 5:16-17.
- Any sin I am unwilling to repent of will not be forgiven.
32 min - How Babies Grow UpIntroduction
- “Dealing with Babes” – Greg Gwin
- I Corinthians 3:1-2
Deepen your love for God and others.- Matthew 22:36-40
- John 21:15-17 – Jesus asks Peter three times if he loves Him. Love is important!
- I John 4:19 – God loved us first.
- Hopefully, our love for our spouse continues to grow after the wedding day.
- Our love for God helps us be more like Him.
- Luke 10:33
- We don’t want to stay a spiritual baby forever. We must continue to grow.
- I Thessalonians 4:9-10
Become more fluent in God’s Word.- I Peter 2:2-3
- The Bible grows with us as we mature.
- If we don’t keep up with our Bible study, we get rusty.
- Hebrews 5:12-14
- Colossians 3:16 – “Let the word of Christ dwell in you richly.”
Continue to repent and grow.- Acts 17:1-3
- I Thessalonians 1:3-10; 3:2
- II Thessalonians 1:3-4 – They started from scratch, but months later, they were growing!
- I John 2:1-2
- Philippians 1:9 – Don’t stand still. Keep growing!
- II Peter 3:18
- II Peter 1:5-7
25 min - The Marriage BedA note about Bible language and euphemisms.
- I Corinthians 7:1
- Genesis 16:2, 4
- Hebrews 13:4
This is a blessing from God! Don’t let the devil steal it!- Genesis 1:27, 31 – Male and female = very good
- Genesis 2:24 (I Corinthians 6:16) – “they shall become one flesh”
- Song of Solomon 4:1-11; 5:10-16 – The joy of marital love!
- Hebrews 13:4 – “the marriage bed is to be undefiled”
What makes this wonderful is that it’s part of a complete relationship.- II Samuel 13:1-2, 14-15 – Lust and sex are not necessarily associated with true love.
- Genesis 29:30-35 – The bed can be empty and bitter when it’s not part of a true, loving relationship.
- In this class we’ve studied: companionship, love, respect, communication, forgiveness, etc. Now we’re talking about physical intimacy. If any one of these pieces of the puzzle are missing or minimized, the rest don’t fit together as well. As per usual God’s way is the best way.
This is very important to make the marriage happy and to limit Satan’s temptations.- I Corinthians 7:1-5
- Mutual obligation
- “Do not deprive one another”
- Satan uses that to make headway! This is not a joke!
- Proverbs 5:15-19
- Sandwiched between warnings about adultery.
- The imagery here (“cistern … well … fountain”) is a poetic way of referring to marital sex.
- Luke 6:31 – “Treat others the same way you want them to treat you.”
Guard your mind.- Genesis 39:6-7 – Lust of the eyes is not limited to men.
- II Samuel 11:2-4 – One thing leads to another.
45 min - Questions in MalachiIntroduction
- God used a question and answer rhetorical technique in Malachi to make His point with Israel.
“How have you loved us?” (Malachi 1:2)- Malachi 1:1-5
- God punished Edom because of their disobedience but blessed Israel.
- Deuteronomy 4:7
- The audacity of even asking this question is amazing!
- I Peter 1:10 – God has done so much to love us for thousands of years!
“How have we despised Your name? … How have we defiled You?” (Malachi 1:6-7)- Malachi 1:6-8 – Would you offer this level of sacrifice to even a human ruler?
- Do we offer sorry, insincere worship to God?
“For what reason?” (Malachi 2:14) [God no longer accepted their worship.]- Malachi 2:13-16
- God is looking at the whole picture of our lives. What we do affects our fellowship with God.
- I Peter 3:7
- I John 4:20-21 – Love God and your neighbors all the time.
“How have we wearied Him? … What have we spoken against You?” (Malachi 2:17; 3:13)- Malachi 2:17; 3:13-15
- They were not worshiping God well.
- They were looking at serving God as being transactional: If I do this for God, He will do this for me.
- Psalms 73:3, 24-26
“How shall we return? … How have we robbed you?” (Malachi 3:7-8)- Malachi 3:7-12
- We must be aware of the power of self-deception.
- Galatians 5:20 – Am I guilty of jealousy?
- Romans 1:29 – Am I guilty of gossip?
- Notice the word “rob”:
- Luke 17:7-10
- God looked at offerings and tithes as things owed to Him. To not give them was robbing Him.
30 min - Luke 11
[Unfortunately, about the first 10 minutes of this recording was lost due to technical difficulties. Sorry about that! -MRW]
Luke 11Luke 11:1-13 – How to pray- Luke 11:1 – See Luke 3:21; 5:16; 6:12; 9:18, 28-29; 22:41-44; 23:46.
- Luke 11:2 – This starts with respect for God and His purposes.
- Luke 11:3 – Thi sis not asking for luxuries or anything beyond the day’s needs. It emphasizes daily dependence on God.
- Luke 11:4 – This reminds us of our needs for forgiveness and the attitude we should have toward others.
- Luke 11:8 – If even a reluctant neighbor can be persuaded to help, how much more so will God?
- II Corinthians 12:8-9; James 4:3; I John 5:14 – Persistence in prayer is good, but not a blank check.
- Sometimes God’s answer is “no.” Sometimes it is “wait.”
- Luke 11:11-13 – See Matthew 7:11. God wants to give us good things. Note that v13 says God will give the Holy Spirit to those that ask Him. What exactly did Jesus mean by this?
Luke 11:29-36 – Authentic Christian living- Luke 11:29 – See Luke 16:31. They just wanted to see more signs. They were not willing to believe. Regarding the sign of Jonah, see Matthew 12:39-42.
- Luke 11:31-32 – The queen of Sheba traveled a great distance to hear Solomon. How much more should we strive to hear Jesus?
32 min
About ScriptureStream
From the publisher's feed
Just the gospel, plainly spoken. ScriptureStream compiles lessons presented at the Benchley church of Christ, located just north of Bryan, TX. Visit ScriptureStream.com for full notes on each lesson…
and additional resources for Bible study.