Bible Commentaries

Isaiah 59:1-21 — Jesus! [have you?] “A surrendered life doesn’t keep you insulated from life’s pain & difficulties, but knowing Him brings joy that none of life’s suffering could ever overwhelm!” (Rebecca Pippert) Snake Eggs! (4,5a) No Justice! (4) Read: A Modern Red Riding Hood Lies – A lie is not just a sound in the air or a sentence on paper. (Warren Wiersbe; pg. 488; With the Word.) It has a life of its own & gives birth to all

Jonah 1:1-3 — Islam in the Quran, Yunus (in Arabic). Jonah is the only prophet named from the Hebrew bible/Tanak in the Qur'an, in the book As-Saaffat, chapter/Surah 37, verse 139-148. We have here a real person & a real story. 2 Kings 14:25 He (Jeroboam II, 793-753bc) restored the territory of Israel from the entrance of Hamath to the Sea of the Arabah, according to the word of the Lord God of Israel, which He had spoken through His servant Jonah the son of Amittai, the prophet who was

Mark 11:12-24 — nothing but leaves. The Fig Tree pictures Israel, taking up space but not producing fruit. The Parable of the Fig Tree in Luke give an example of this. (Lk.13:6-9) Jesus is still seeking fruit from His people. To Be fruitless is sin. Jn.15:16 You did not choose Me, but I chose you and appointed you that you should go and bear fruit, and that your fruit should remain. Fruit? – But the fruit of the Spirit is love, joy, peace, longsuffering, kindness, goodness, faithfulness,

John 6:22-71 — INTRO: Oh, taste & see that the Lord is good; Blessed is the man who trusts in Him! Jesus had just fed the 5000. Jesus reads their hearts & confronts them with their motive. WONDER BREAD! BETHLEHEM! (22-40) (26) Most assuredly - Amen, Amen. A teaching technique that indicated a crucial idea from Jesus (also: vs.32,47,53) Often people want the

Acts 28:1-31 — ALL through the storm! Still miles from Rome, God allows them 3 months of R&R, time to heal. ISLAND OF REFUGE! ​​​​​​​BITTEN BUT NOT FORSAKEN! (1-6) (1) Malta - small island 50m south of Sicily, which is just south of the toe of Italy’s boot. You’ve heard of the small white dog breed, the Maltese. (from here) Island is a rugged mountainous island, only 18 miles long & 8 miles wide. In Paul’s

Romans 15:1-13 — overcame great obstacles. By direct Scriptures that call for endurance & speaks encouragement. It gives us Hope – God has promised us a wonderful future. The O.T. underlines, highlights, & illustrates that promise! Our Application! (5,6) (5) Jesus Christ is our model for Christian conduct. Check out all other deities, from the Assyrians, Babylonians, Phoenicians, Egyptians, Persians, Greeks, Romans…check out all other Holy Books…No holy book calls God by such

Romans 16:1-27 — were w/Paul in Corinth(8 men, 1 women). This reveals the importance Paul placed on women in ministry in that 1st cent; and an intimate knowledge of their family relationships & Christian service! Partnering in Ministry: Phil.1:3-5(NIV) I thank my God every time I remember you. In all my prayers for all of you, I always pray with joy because of your partnership in the gospel from the first day until now. “Each of us has the opportunity to participate in ministries far

1 Corinthians 11:17-34 — toward communion? Title: A Meal to Remember! Outline: Careless Communion! (17-22); Careful Communion! (23-34). CARELESS COMMUNION! (17-22) (17) I do not praise you – Paul did in vs.2, but can’t here! Come together – 5 x’s. (17,18,20,33,34) Oh, so I guess you are to come together as a local church body! (Baam) They enjoyed “Love Feasts” or “Agape Feasts”. Actually, they would have a meal 1st, then communion. This

1 Corinthians 12:12-31 — overwhelmed by water. The water was in the ship, as well as the ship being underneath the water. Paul’s saying that Christians are in the H.S. & that the H.S. is in the Christians. 1 BODY, WITH DIVERSITY! (15-19) ​​​​​​​(15-17) Often times we struggle with exactly the opposite thinking(not, I’m too important but)…“My ministry isn’t that important”, “I’m only a (hostess,

2 Corinthians 8:1-24 — their money! George Sweeting said, “For the Macedonian Christians, giving was not a chore but a challenge, not a burden but a blessing. Giving was not something to be avoided but a privilege to be desired.” It all starts here! (5) When you give yourself totally over to the Lord, you’re offering your “time, talents, & treasures” [lock, stock, & barrel; the whole 9 yards; the whole enchilada!] After a great gathering of Christian youth, the offering

Colossians 1:15-29 — it will follow you for food the rest of its life. People are like that chicken, you inflict pain on them & they will follow you for food the rest of their life.” (Ravi Zacharias; Podcast 9-22-08; Absolute Truth in Relative Terms(Part 2 of 5)) Man sure has come up with some bizarre ideas to get men to follow them. What system of control did God use? Oh He didn’t use a system of control & manipulation to get something from man. Instead He did something for rather than to mankind! Let’s

2 Thessalonians 2:1-17 — thwart) His religious system is connected with the Temple. In Dan.9:27 he makes a cov. w/the Jews to open the Temple to them for 7 years. He breaks it in the middle, known as the abomination of desolation. Mt.24:13 RESTRAINED (5-7) (6) What or who is restraining? (read 6-8) The debate lies here. I.D.ing the Restrainer. Some say Governments (their purpose is to restrain evil/Rom.13); Or, Satan (doesn’t make sense w/vs.7); Others say the H.S. It is neuter in

1 Timothy 4:1-16 — look for in a church? - Look for in a pastor? Q: How should the pastor teach? - Deal with false teachers or bad doctrine? – How should he live? Outline: Word & Prayer; Nourishment & Exercise; Practice & Progress. WORD & PRAYER! (1-5) Q: Where do we run for all questions to life & godliness? The Word of God & Prayer settle the matter! Wherever the light of the gospel shines, the shadow of false doctrine lurks closely behind. The Christian faith was preached,

Hebrews 11:23-40 — Jehovah) & Jochebed(Jehovah is her Glory) were the molders & shapers of Moses faith during the early years (Ex.2:9,10). Moses became aware of his own origins; was taught to fear God; made conscious of his call to deliver his people. As Acts 7:25 attests to this, For he supposed that his brethren would have understood that God would deliver them by his hand, but they did not understand) Their faith, prayers, bravery, & their creativity saved their son. What an encouragement for those

Hebrews 12:12-17 — as an eagle; sometimes man is enabled to run & not be weary; but he also knew that of all things it is hardest to walk every day and not to faint. (William Barclay, Hebrews, pg.179) Outline: Finish Strong. Guard Against… Slide5 FINISH STRONG (12-14) Here the writer runs back to his running analogy. (vs.1 let us run w/endurance the race set before us) Remember, the spiritual life is a long distance run. Slide6 RUN TOUGH (12) The call here is to tough it

Hebrews 6:13-20 — broken.” God’s promises are not pie crust promises. He will never break a single promise He has made. Title: Soul Anchor Outline:No Pie Crust Promises; Find a New Hope; Anchored for Progress; Carrying the Anchor Forward NO PIE CRUST PROMISES (13-15) God’s promise & God’s oath assure us that we are His, and God’s character backs up His words. Abraham The Role Model Who should we imitate?(12)…well here’s one example...Abraham. But before we talk about

1 Peter 4:1-19 — serve! #4 We No Longer Have To Live For The Will Of The Gentiles! (3) (3) Peter says there MUST be a break from our old ways! You should not allow the old life to control you. Life is too short to waste it on godless living. Eph.5:13-18(NLT) So be careful how you live, not as fools but as those who are wise. Make the most of every opportunity for doing good in these evil days. Don't act thoughtlessly, but try to understand what the Lord wants you to do. Don't be drunk

2 Peter 2:12-22 — money! Enticing others – They greedily bite at every baited hook, unconcerned about the disastrous consequences. Bad enough they’ll bear the responsibility of their own sins…but the sins of others too is intolerable! (15,16) Mercenary Mentality! [mercenary = work for $ at the expense of ethics] [like Muammar al-Gaddafi hired to fire on his people in Libya] Explain who Balaam is. (Numb.22-24; 31) He was covetous of king Balak’s gold, & taught Israel

1 Samuel 28:1-25 — valley. (6) The Lord did not answer him – Not by dreams - maybe because when you don’t enquire of God by day, He doesn’t usually speak to you by night? Not by Urim(priests) - maybe because you performed genocide on 85 of them. Not by prophet - maybe because you always refused to listen to the prophets. Choose Your God! - Joshua, who had been chosen to succeed Moses and who, unlike his predecessor, had been privileged to enter the Promised Land, assembled

1 Samuel 28:1-25 — valley. (6) The Lord did not answer him – Not by dreams - maybe because when you don’t enquire of God by day, He doesn’t usually speak to you by night? Not by Urim(priests) - maybe because you performed genocide on 85 of them. Not by prophet - maybe because you always refused to listen to the prophets. Choose Your God! - Joshua, who had been chosen to succeed Moses and who, unlike his predecessor, had been privileged to enter the Promised Land, assembled