March 18, 2024
March 24 Lesson | Communion
A secular proverb says, “When all else fails, read the directions.” The Corinthian church had trouble following directions . . .
Series: Study
March 11, 2024
March 17 Lesson | Selfless Liberty
Simon Sinek emphasized that “Great leaders sacrifice their own comfort—even their own survival—for the good of those in their care.” The apostle Paul could have written that line. . . .
March 4, 2024
March 10 Lesson | Servant Leadership
The divisions in the church at Corinth were mostly caused by pride, which ran counter to servant leadership. . . .
February 26, 2024
March 3 Lesson | Unity
To say that the church in Roman Corinth had trouble with unity would be a gross understatement. They were divided over leaders, the nature of the gospel, the use of Christian freedom . . .
February 19, 2024
Feb. 25 Lesson | Seeing and Believing
People in Jesus’ day saw the miracles, heard him teach, and watched him interact with people high and low. Still, many of them refused to believe. But for the Jesus followers of John 20, seeing was believing. . . .
February 12, 2024
Feb. 18 Lesson | The Unbelief of the Pharisees
The secular proverb, “There are none so blind as those who will not see,” is certainly true. That proverb would describe many of the Pharisees of Jesus’ day. . . .
February 5, 2024
Feb. 11 Lesson | Signs and Wonders
The Bible has a love/hate relationship with signs or miracles. On the one hand they can engender faith (John 10:25). On the other hand they can derail faith in the miracle worker (John 6:26). . . .
January 29, 2024
Feb. 4 Lesson | The Disciples Believe
After Jesus’ baptism, he stayed near where John the Baptist was preaching and baptizing. At this point he gave a “preliminary” call to Andrew, Peter, Philip, and Nathanael. . . .
January 22, 2024
Jan. 28 Lesson | I AM the Vine
As Jesus continued his Upper Room Discourse in John 15, he moved beyond metaphor by claiming to be the true vine of Israel. Then he connected the dots between the vine and himself, the gardener and his Father, and the branches and the disciples. . . .
January 15, 2024
Jan. 21 Lesson | I AM the Way
The exclusivity of Jesus is a problem in a pluralistic country like the United States. There is immediate pushback when anyone says, “This is the only way.” . . . But what else are Christians to believe and say when Jesus said that he is the gate (John 10:9)? . . .
January 8, 2024
Jan. 14 Lesson | I AM the Good Shepherd
The biblical world had a love/hate relationship with shepherds. Shepherds were an abomination to the Egyptians (Genesis 46:34), and by the first century BC they were the ragamuffins of society (Luke 2:8-20). But Scripture has high regard for shepherds. . . .
January 1, 2024
Jan. 7 Lesson | Before Abraham Was, I AM
It is hard to overstate the significance of Abraham. Today he is looked to as the father of three religions: Judaism, Christianity, and Islam. His name is mentioned 11 times in this lesson text. . . .
December 25, 2023
Dec. 31 Lesson | I Am the Bread of Life
Two miracles provide the background for this lesson text. Jesus multiplied five barley loaves and two fish and fed 5,000 men. Jesus then walked on the Sea of Galilee. . . .
December 18, 2023
Dec. 24 Lesson | The True Light Enters the World
Jesus was coming into the world—that is the essence of the Christmas story. . . .
December 11, 2023
Dec. 17 Lesson | The Water that Gives Life
In his encounter with the Samaritan woman at Jacob's well, Jesus shattered gender, ethnic, religious, social, and cultural barriers. . . .
December 4, 2023
Dec. 10 Lesson | Eternal Life
In his conversation with Nicodemus, Jesus zeroed in on the difference between heavenly things and earthly things. The born-again experience is a gift from God above—not from the law below. . . .
November 27, 2023
Dec. 3 Lesson | Witness to the Light
God’s prophetic voice had been stilled for close to 400 years when John the Baptist began preaching in the wilderness of Judea. He was to be God’s messenger and the one who would prepare the way for the Lord. . . .
November 20, 2023
November 26 | Rome
The city of Rome attracts millions of visitors each year. It also attracted the apostle Paul. He longed to go there (Romans 1:11). . . .
November 13, 2023
November 19 | Ephesus
Some cities are so significant that just saying their names gets a reader’s or hearer’s attention. In the ancient world, this was true with Ephesus, a city with a population that rivaled Rome and Thessalonica. Paul visited Ephesus as the end of his second missionary journey . . .
November 6, 2023
November 12 | First Missionary Journey
In "Toy Story," Buzz Lightyear’s famous catchphrase was, “To infinity and beyond!” One could use that same line upon coming to Acts 13. The chapter continues the geographical expansion of the church outlined by Jesus in his commission to the apostles, with the goal of reaching “the ends of the earth” (Acts 1:8). . . .
