Theology & Bible

Theology & Bible helps Christians understand Scripture and the core teachings of the Christian faith. Explore Bible-based articles on biblical interpretation, doctrine, salvation, the Holy Spirit, baptism, communion, creation, and key themes across the Old and New Testaments. You’ll find thoughtful guidance for studying the Bible faithfully, applying God’s Word to life and ministry, and growing in theological clarity rooted in the gospel. Whether you’re a church leader, teacher, student, or everyday disciple, this hub equips you to know God through Scripture and live with conviction and hope.

February 27, 2017

Christian Standard

Lesson for March 5, 2017: Perfect Love (1 John 4:7-19)

Dr. Mark Scott wrote this treatment of the International Sunday School Lesson. Scott teaches preaching and New Testament at Ozark Christian College, Joplin, Missouri. This lesson treatment is published in the February 26, 2017, issue of The Lookout magazine, and is also available online at www.lookoutmag.com. ______ By Mark Scott  God”s primary identity must become our primary activity. That identity and activity in a word is love. A loving God was all but unheard of in ancient Greece. The false gods they believed in were often more immoral than humans and had to be appeased””not embraced due to their love. But in a stunning statement

February 20, 2017

Christian Standard

Lesson for February 26, 2017: Christ Creates Holy Living (Galatians 5:18″“6:10)

Dr. Mark Scott wrote this treatment of the International Sunday School Lesson. Scott teaches preaching and New Testament at Ozark Christian College, Joplin, Missouri. This lesson treatment is published in the February 19, 2017, issue of The Lookout magazine, and is also available online at www.lookoutmag.com. ______ By Mark Scott  Jesus taught that good trees bear good fruit and bad trees bear bad fruit (Matthew 7:18). Christian freedom allows believers to bear fruit like healthy bushes and trees. Christians are to live in moral excellence. But this is not so we can look at others with moral smugness, but rather so we can serve others

February 13, 2017

Christian Standard

Lesson for February 19, 2017: Freedom in Christ (Galatians 5:1-17)

Dr. Mark Scott wrote this treatment of the International Sunday School Lesson. Scott teaches preaching and New Testament at Ozark Christian College, Joplin, Missouri. This lesson treatment is published in the February 12, 2017, issue of The Lookout magazine, and is also available online at www.lookoutmag.com. ______ By Mark Scott  Benjamin Franklin was leaving Independence Hall in Philadelphia when the Constitutional Convention ended, and a certain Mrs. Powel asked Mr. Franklin, “Well, Doctor, what have we got, a republic or a monarchy?” Not hesitating, Franklin responded, “A republic, if you can keep it.” The apostle Paul says something very similar in our text. Freedom has

February 6, 2017

Christian Standard

Lesson for February 12, 2017: New Birth Brings Freedom (Galatians 4)

Dr. Mark Scott wrote this treatment of the International Sunday School Lesson. Scott teaches preaching and New Testament at Ozark Christian College, Joplin, Missouri. This lesson treatment is published in the February 5, 2017, issue of The Lookout magazine, and is also available online at www.lookoutmag.com. ______ By Mark Scott  Today is Abraham Lincoln”s birthday. Were he still living he would be 208 years old. We know him as the 16th president of the United States and also as the Great Emancipator. He not only signed a freedom document, he also saw the country through a terrible civil war. Freedom is not easy. The birth of

January 30, 2017

Christian Standard

Lesson for February 5, 2017: Re-Created to Live in Harmony (Galatians 3:26″“4:7)

Dr. Mark Scott wrote this treatment of the International Sunday School Lesson. Scott teaches preaching and New Testament at Ozark Christian College, Joplin, Missouri. This lesson treatment is published in the January 29, 2017, issue of The Lookout magazine, and is also available online at www.lookoutmag.com. ______ By Mark Scott  Someone has rightly said, “You cannot be “˜revived” if you have never first been “˜vived.”” In last month”s lessons we focused on God creating the universe. This month”s lessons focus on God recreating the universe through redeeming his people for freedom to live in holiness. Our study takes us to Galatians, that Magna Carta of

January 23, 2017

Christian Standard

Lesson for January 29, 2017: Praise God with All Creation (Psalm 148)

Dr. Mark Scott wrote this treatment of the International Sunday School Lesson. Scott teaches preaching and New Testament at Ozark Christian College, Joplin, Missouri. This lesson treatment is published in the January 22, 2017, issue of The Lookout magazine, and is also available online at www.lookoutmag.com. ______ By Mark Scott  “All Creatures of our God and King” was created around the 1900s, but the lyrics go all the way back to St. Francis of Assisi (1225). The hymn contains several stanzas. In the first five stanzas a portion of creation is beckoned to give God praise (one””sun and moon; two””wind and clouds; three””water and fire;

January 16, 2017

Christian Standard

Lesson for January 22, 2017: Praise God the Creator (Psalm 104)

Dr. Mark Scott wrote this treatment of the International Sunday School Lesson. Scott teaches preaching and New Testament at Ozark Christian College, Joplin, Missouri. This lesson treatment is published in the January 15, 2017, issue of The Lookout magazine, and is also available online at www.lookoutmag.com. ______ By Mark Scott  The Creator is separate from his creation. He transcends nature. Creation is awesome. The Creator is more awesome. The disciples found this out when a storm arose on the Sea of Galilee. It was one thing to face the storm (Mark 4:35-38). It was quite another thing to face the one who could calm the

January 13, 2017

Christian Standard

The Shedding of Blood

By Ronald G. Davis The Passover of the Hebrew people was inextricably tied to the shedding of blood. How many thousands of Egypt”s firstborn sons had to die to free the Hebrews from their bondage? And how many young and innocent lambs and goats became a hurried meal of roasted flesh? How many gallons of their blood became the blessed stripes on doorjambs and door frames? Exodus 11 and 12 describe the wonderfully awful and bloody events of that solemn and deadly night of redemption. The Passover when Jesus gathered his devoted””and not-so-devoted””12 friends and disciples in the upper room

January 9, 2017

Christian Standard

Lesson for January 15, 2017: Praise God the Provider (Psalm 65)

Dr. Mark Scott wrote this treatment of the International Sunday School Lesson. Scott teaches preaching and New Testament at Ozark Christian College, Joplin, Missouri. This lesson treatment is published in the January 8, 2017, issue of The Lookout magazine, and is also available online at www.lookoutmag.com. ______ By Mark Scott  “Blessed art Thou, O Lord our God, King of the universe, who brings forth bread from the earth.” Our Jewish friends call this the Traditional Ha-Motzi Blessing, which is recited before eating bread on the Sabbath. Psalm 65 may be something like a predecessor to that prayer. It praises God for his provision. The superscription

January 6, 2017

Christian Standard

John at the Cross

By Ron Davis As Jesus died, John stood at the cross. The apostle describes the scene in his Gospel, John 19:25, 26. He is the one who called himself “the disciple whom he loved.” He fully sensed and experienced Jesus” love. Jesus did love John. He saw in John a young man capable of a lifetime commitment. And that was realized. John”s love for Jesus is likewise obvious. He saw in Jesus the One long promised, the One who would save. He saw the Word incarnate. That is why he stood at the cross. Heartbroken. He was losing his good

January 2, 2017

Christian Standard

Lesson for January 8, 2017: Praise God with a New Song (Psalm 96)

Dr. Mark Scott wrote this treatment of the International Sunday School Lesson. Scott teaches preaching and New Testament at Ozark Christian College, Joplin, Missouri. This lesson treatment is published in the January 1, 2017, issue of The Lookout magazine, and is also available online at www.lookoutmag.com. ______ By Mark Scott  The Psalms improve your song. If your song is exuberant, a psalm will sound like seventy-six trombones in a marching band. If your song is a lament, the psalm will sound like the blues. For every season of the heart, there is a psalm. Much like the preaching of Jesus, there is something for everyone.

December 26, 2016

Christian Standard

Lesson for January 1, 2017: Praise God for Creation (Psalm 33:1-9)

Dr. Mark Scott wrote this treatment of the International Sunday School Lesson. Scott teaches preaching and New Testament at Ozark Christian College, Joplin, Missouri. This lesson treatment is published in the December 25, 2016, issue of The Lookout magazine, and is also available online at www.lookoutmag.com. ______ By Mark Scott  Mother Nature is not God”s wife, but creation is God”s gift. It is therefore obvious that God”s people praise him for that gift. And it is right to start that praise on the first day of a new year. Creation arose from the character and power of God and finds its foundation in his identity.

December 19, 2016

Christian Standard

Lesson for December 25, 2016: The Savior Has Arrived (Luke 2:1-21)

Dr. Mark Scott wrote this treatment of the International Sunday School Lesson. Scott teaches preaching and New Testament at Ozark Christian College, Joplin, Missouri. This lesson treatment is published in the December 18 issue of The Lookout magazine, and is also available online at www.lookoutmag.com. ______ By Mark Scott  “The Savior has arrived.” That is quite a headline. Big news. Make no mistake””this is a big day for the church. Joni Eareckson Tada said, “If God can become man, then everything else is easy.” Paul Scherer, who taught homiletics at Princeton Theological Seminary, said, “God came walking down the stairs of heaven with a baby

December 16, 2016

Christian Standard

Eucharist

By Daniel Schantz “Enter into His gates with thanksgiving, And into His courts with praise” (Psalm 100:4, New King James Version). Eucharist is a term for the Lord”s Supper that means “to give thanks.” Giving thanks is something like a digital password to the presence of God, perhaps because it represents humility. When someone does something wonderful for me, I must acknowledge it before I do anything else. Imagine you are attending a Super Bowl. You have good seats and the stands are full. The game is a nail-bitter to the end, but whenever there is a touchdown, no one stands,

December 12, 2016

Christian Standard

Lesson for December 18, 2016: The Forerunner of the Savior (Luke 1:1-23, 57-66)

Dr. Mark Scott wrote this treatment of the International Sunday School Lesson. Scott teaches preaching and New Testament at Ozark Christian College, Joplin, Missouri. This lesson treatment is published in the December 11 issue of The Lookout magazine, and is also available online at www.lookoutmag.com. ______ By Mark Scott  Musicians have their warm-up acts, knights have their introducers, kings have their cupbearers, and the Messiah had his forerunner. A forerunner is a predecessor, literally someone who runs before. For Jesus that person was John the Baptist. John the Baptist ran before Jesus. Today”s text backs up from last week”s lesson. Before Gabriel made the

December 11, 2016

Christian Standard

Mystery, Model, Hope

By Chad Ragsdale Difficult to comprehend, frustrating to explain, the fact that God became flesh is central to our faith. And he did it through the birth of a baby to a virgin. Sometimes I wonder what Christmas at Job”s house would have been like. Holidays can be especially difficult for families living in the wake of tragedy. The songs, parties, and decorations might have the opposite of their intended effect. Rather than inspiring goodwill and joy, they only amplify loss and grief. So try to imagine living through Job”s unimaginable loss while also navigating the joy, festivity, and family

December 7, 2016

Christian Standard

Incarnation

By Jim Tune “”˜The virgin will conceive and give birth to a son, and they will call him Immanuel” (which means “˜God with us”)” (Matthew 1:23). We build our walls and we call it peace. In Northern Ireland, miles and miles of “peace walls” snake through Belfast and some other cities to separate Catholic and Protestant neighborhoods. The first walls were built in 1969 during the outbreak of “the Troubles.” Even since the Good Friday peace agreement was finally reached in 1998, many miles of new walls have been built. Forty-eight peace walls exist in Northern Ireland today. They divide

December 5, 2016

Christian Standard

Lesson for December 11, 2016: The Affirmation of the Promise (Luke 1:39-56)

Dr. Mark Scott wrote this treatment of the International Sunday School Lesson. Scott teaches preaching and New Testament at Ozark Christian College, Joplin, Missouri. This lesson treatment is published in the December 4 issue of The Lookout magazine, and is also available online at www.lookoutmag.com. ______ By Mark Scott  Few things feel as good as affirmation. Is this because we are so insecure or our self-esteem is so poor? Or is it because we rightfully long for proper affirmation? While in Israel this past summer, our tour group affirmed our tour guide, Mike, at the Garden Tomb. Alan Ahlgrim spoke words of affirmation and

November 28, 2016

Christian Standard

Lesson for December 4, 2016: God Promises a Savior (Luke 1:26-38)

Dr. Mark Scott wrote this treatment of the International Sunday School Lesson. Scott teaches preaching and New Testament at Ozark Christian College, Joplin, Missouri. This lesson treatment is published in the November 27 issue of The Lookout magazine, and is also available online at www.lookoutmag.com. ______ By Mark Scott  One thing that we can take to the bank is that God always keeps his word. He does not make a promise and then fail to keep it, and God could not have made a greater promise to the world than the promise of sending a Savior. During this Christmas season we are studying Luke

November 25, 2016

Christian Standard

See the Body

By Diane Stortz A young woman visited a service and was surprised by how Communion was served. The elements representing Jesus” body and blood were placed on tables around the perimeter of the room, and worshippers got out of their seats and walked to one of the tables. Some people ate the bread and drank the juice right at the tables. Some took the elements back to their seats for reflection and prayer. Some people stayed seated and prayed awhile before they went to one of the tables. Still others picked up the bread and juice and then gathered as

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