Faith

• Lesson 2 for the week of April 4 to April 11

One of the challenges of talking about faith is that the word has so many different connotations.  As you reflect on the questions below, it may be valuable to list the many different ways in...

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Love

• Lesson 1 for the week of March 28 to April 4

This quarter, our discussion guide explores two related elements of the Christian life: doctrine and experience.  Each week, we will focus on one theme and, as Bruinsma suggests, we will “attempt to maintain a careful...

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Introduction

• Introduction

Before using this discussion guide, the reader should be aware of several assumptions made by the author. First, I assume this study guide will be used in close connection with the Adult Sabbath School Study...

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“Here Am I; Send Me!”: The Prophet Isaiah

• Lesson 13 for the week of September 20 to September 27

Questions and observations for discussion: 1. What do we know about Isaiah with regard to his background and ministry as a prophet? Basic facts of his life may be gleaned not only from Isaiah itself...

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Gifted for Service: Philip

• Lesson 12 for the week of September 13 to September 20

Questions and observations for discussion: While our study is about Philip the Evangelist, there were two known ‘Philips’ who were followers of Jesus, the Evangelist we meet in Acts and Philip the Apostle who preceded...

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Mission in a Pagan Land: Daniel and Company

• Lesson 11 for the week of September 6 to September 13

Questions and observations for discussion: 1.    What can we know about Daniel’s family background and early formative circumstances of his life?  (The following observations are taken from Z. Stefanovic, Daniel: Wisdom to the Wise: A...

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Women of Mission

• Lesson 10 for the week of August 30 to September 6

Questions and observations for discussion: 1.    What was the social standing of women in the first century A.D. among Jews?  What legal rights did they have if any? First of all, from the perspective of...

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A Pillar of Mission: The Apostle Peter

• Lesson 9 for the week of August 23 to August 30

Questions and observations for discussion: Although Peter was impetuous, ambitious, and could be even rashly violent, Jesus saw through this roughness a faithful commitment and  loyalty and a teachable spirit that would make him not...

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From Folly to Faith: The Apostle Peter

• Lesson 8 for the week of August 16 to August 23

Questions and observations for discussion: 1.    What are the basic facts about Peter’s background? Peter is most likely the best known disciple of Jesus, a Galilean fisherman, the brother of Andrew (Mark 1:16-20) and the...

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The Apostle John

• Lesson 7 for the week of August 9 to August 16

Questions and observations for discussion: 1.    What can we glean from the N.T. about the personal background of John the disciple of Jesus Christ? John (together with his brother James) was a son of Zebedee...

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The Compassionate Savior

• Lesson 6 for the week of August 2 to August 9

Questions and observations for discussion: Compassion is a feeling and an attitude of the heart that manifests itself at different levels and is more-or-less predictable for certain relationships.  A predictable manifestation of compassion is that...

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Matthew 10: Jesus and His Disciples

• Lesson 5 for the week of July 26 to August 2

Questions and observations for discussion: 1.    When it comes to witnessing for the Kingdom, what message does the diversity of those Jesus called to be his disciples have for us? 2.    In the record of...

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The Son of God Among Us

• Lesson 4 for the week of July 19 to July 26

Questions and observations for discussion: 1.    Basically every Christian must ask the question, “What is the truth of the gospel?”  What is it that made and makes the N.T. revelation of God in Jesus Christ...

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John the Baptist: Preparing the Way for Jesus

• Lesson 3 for the week of July 12 to July 19

Questions and observations for discussion: 1.    What do we know of John the Baptist’s background? In Luke 1:11-38 we find the birth stories John and Jesus intertwined by revelations given by Gabriel.  One is born...

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