Articles for tag: Sam E. Stone

January 13, 2014

Christian Standard

Lesson for January 19, 2014: Enlarging Your Circle (Luke 14:7-24)

This treatment of the International Sunday School Lesson is written by Sam E. Stone, former editor of CHRISTIAN STANDARD. ______ By Sam E. Stone The scene described in today”s text takes place in the third year of Jesus” earthly ministry. Luke 14 begins with him having dinner in the home of a prominent Pharisee. Luke explains that “he was being carefully watched” by his critics. The critics didn”t care about the health of a very sick man who was brought to Jesus there; they were interested only in seeing whether or not Jesus would cure him, since it was a

January 6, 2014

Christian Standard

Lesson for January 12, 2014: Living as God”s People (Luke 6:12-49)

This treatment of the International Sunday School Lesson is written by Sam E. Stone, former editor of CHRISTIAN STANDARD. ______ By Sam E. Stone Luke does not specify the time and place when Jesus delivered the message we study today. It possibly could be the same lesson known as the “Sermon on the Mount” (Matthew 5″“7). It is also possible that it is a different message delivered at a different time but containing some basic themes and illustrations that are also found in the other. Regardless, this message has one main emphasis””living as God”s people.   Praying and Choosing Luke

December 30, 2013

Christian Standard

Lesson for January 5, 2014: Honoring the Sabbath (Luke 6:1-11)

This treatment of the International Sunday School Lesson is written by Sam E. Stone, former editor of CHRISTIAN STANDARD. ______ By Sam E. Stone Questions about fasting arose early in Christ”s ministry (see Luke 5:33-35). It seems as though the disciples of John the Baptist joined the Pharisees in asking Jesus questions about fasting. Mark suggests that the questions were asked on one of the fasting days observed by both the disciples of John and the Pharisees (see Mark 2:18). Luke records five criticisms in a row from the Pharisees with two of them claiming a violation of the Sabbath.

December 23, 2013

Christian Standard

Lesson for December 29, 2013: Jesus Is Presented in the Temple (Luke 2:21-40)

This treatment of the International Sunday School Lesson is written by Sam E. Stone, former editor of CHRISTIAN STANDARD. ______ By Sam E. Stone This month”s lessons have followed the theme, “God Sends Jesus,” based on Luke”s Gospel. We have seen how God called various individuals to have part in these events. In today”s study Simeon and Anna touch the life of Jesus when he is just a baby. Their hopes were realized in the birth of the Messiah, just as ours are.   Obedient Parents Luke 2:21, 22 Joseph and Mary took Jesus to Jerusalem to present him to

December 16, 2013

Christian Standard

Lesson for December 22, 2013: Jesus Is Born (Luke 2:1-20)

This treatment of the International Sunday School Lesson is written by Sam E. Stone, former editor of CHRISTIAN STANDARD. ______ By Sam E. Stone Of the four Gospel writers, Luke is the one who gives the historical details and setting of Jesus” birth. With careful research and guided by the Holy Spirit”s inspiration, he records the wonderful news of Christ”s birth and how those who first heard about it were called to rejoice. No doubt Luke interviewed Mary, Jesus” mother, in preparing to write it (Luke 1:3; 2:19). The Baby”s Birth Luke 2:1-7 Caesar Augustus issued a decree that a census should be taken of the entire Roman world. The Romans were

December 9, 2013

Christian Standard

Lesson for December 15, 2013: Zechariah Prophesies About His Son John (Luke 1:57-80)

By Sam E. Stone It had been 400 years since the last of the Old Testament prophets appeared on the scene in Israel. The angel Gabriel”s announcement””first to Zechariah, then to Mary””broke Heaven”s silence. When Zechariah was told that he and his elderly wife, Elizabeth, would be the parents of a son (John), the old priest was incredulous. Because he asked the angel for a sign, he was unable to speak from that moment on. On the other hand, when Mary learned that she would be the mother of the Messiah, she humbly submitted herself to be the Lord”s slave.

December 2, 2013

Christian Standard

Lesson for December 8, 2013: Mary Sings Her Praise (Luke 1:46-56)

By Sam E. Stone When Mary was visited by the angel Gabriel, she learned that God had selected her to be the mother of his Son. After receiving this message she traveled to see her relative Elizabeth who lived many miles away from Nazareth, down in Judea. Elizabeth had also received a message from the Lord. Although she was childless and of advanced age, God promised to answer her prayer for a son (Luke 1:5-25). The son of Elizabeth and Zechariah would be called John the Baptist, sent by God to prepare the way for the Messiah. Last week”s lesson

November 28, 2013

Christian Standard

When It”s Hard to Give Thanks

By Sam E. Stone Two men were walking through a field when they spotted an enraged bull. Instantly they started running for the nearest fence. The bull was in hot pursuit. Terrified, one shouted to the other, “Pray, John. We”re in for it!” “I can”t,” his friend yelled back. “I”ve never prayed in public in all my life!” “You”ve got to!” his friend implored. “The bull”s gaining on us!” “OK,” panted John. “I”ll pray the only prayer I know””the one my mom taught me at the table: “˜O Lord, for what we are about to receive, make us truly thankful.””

November 25, 2013

Christian Standard

Lesson for December 1, 2013: The Angel Foretells Jesus” Birth (Luke 1:26-45)

By Sam E. Stone For the next two months our lessons are taken from Luke”s Gospel, presenting “Jesus and the Just Reign of God.” Luke is the longest of the four Gospels and, in fact, is the longest book in the New Testament. Angels are shown throughout to be special messengers from God. Early in chapter one, Luke records the visit of the angel Gabriel when he brought hope to a priest, Zechariah (Luke 1:8-23). He and his wife, Elizabeth, had no children and they were “both well along in years.” The angel told him his wife would bear a

November 18, 2013

Christian Standard

Lesson for November 24, 2013: Beginning of the Tabernacle (Exodus 35″“40)

By Sam E. Stone In the account of the building of the tabernacle, one refrain stands out above everything else: “Moses did everything just as the Lord commanded him“ (see Exodus 40:16, 19, 21, 23, 25, 27, 29, 32). Wilbur Fields calls these eight verses “An overview of obedience! A chronicle of compliance!” James E. Smith put it this way: “The Tabernacle is rooted in divine revelation. The Israelites merely implemented the directives of God. Eighteen times in the last two chapters the narrator emphasizes the complete compliance to the commandments of God . . . God”s commands are meant

November 11, 2013

Christian Standard

Lesson for November 17, 2013: Beginning of Freedom (Exodus 13:17-22; 14)

By Sam E. Stone Last week we reviewed the institution of the Passover meal when the Israelites prepared to leave their bondage in Egypt. With the death of every firstborn Egyptian, Pharaoh relented and gave permission for God”s people to leave. As they did, the presence of God went before them, visible in a pillar of cloud and of fire (Exodus 13:21). God told them to take a most unlikely route. He directed them toward the Red Sea rather than going northward on the Via Maris through the land of the Philistines (13:18). Their circuitous route made Pharaoh conclude that

November 4, 2013

Christian Standard

Lesson for November 10, 2013: Beginning of Passover (Exodus 6:2-30; 12)

By Sam E. Stone “The deliverance of Israel from the bondage of Egypt was at hand; also their adoption as the nation of Jehovah,” writes C. F. Keil. “But for this a divine consecration was necessary, that their outward severance from the land of Egypt might be accompanied by an inward severance from everything of an Egyptian or heathen nature. This consecration was to be imparted by the Passover””a festival which was to lay the foundation for Israel”s birth into the new life of grace and fellowship with God, and to renew it perpetually in time to come.” God gave

October 28, 2013

Christian Standard

Lesson for November 3, 2013: God Prepares for Deliverance (Exodus 1″“4)

By Sam E. Stone In our study of Genesis we saw God appear to Abraham (Genesis 15), reaffirming his promise to make of him a great nation. But God indicated that Abraham”s descendants would have to remain in Egypt for 400 years (v. 13). While the Israelites were enslaved there, a baby boy was born. His mother hid him in a basket (a papyrus boat) and placed it in the Nile River, hoping his life would be spared. Pharaoh”s daughter found him and drew him out of the water, giving him the name Moses. Moses saw that, while he had

October 21, 2013

Christian Standard

Lesson for October 27, 2013: The Blessing Passes to Jacob (Genesis 27, 28; 32:22-30; 35:9-15)

By Sam E. Stone Last week”s lesson concluded with Isaac becoming extremely prosperous (Genesis 26:13). He and his family moved south toward Beersheba, where his father Abraham had lived. Genesis 27 describes how Jacob tricked his father into giving him the special blessing that normally would have gone to his elder brother, Esau (27:1-40). When Esau learned of Jacob”s deception he cried, “Isn”t he rightly named Jacob? He has deceived me these two times: He took my birthright, and now he”s taken my blessing!” (v. 36). Esau planned to kill him after his father died. When his mother, Rebekah, learned

October 14, 2013

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Lesson for October 20, 2013: A Blessing for Ishmael and Isaac (Genesis 15″“17; 21:9-21; 26:1-25)

By Sam E. Stone Abraham is described in Scripture as an example of faith, and he certainly is (see Hebrews 11:8). But even “the father of the faithful” had his shortcomings. At one point in his life, he and Sarah seemed to doubt that God would fulfill his promise to give them a child. Sarah suggested they take things into their own hands. She urged Abraham to sleep with her handmaid, Hagar. He did and fathered a child””Ishmael. Their attempt to run ahead of God led to tragic results, the effects of which are still obvious in the world today.

October 7, 2013

Christian Standard

Lesson for October 13, 2013: A Promise to Sarah (Genesis 17:15-17; 18:9-15; 21:1-7)

By Sam E. Stone When God originally called Abram (as he was then known) to leave his home in Ur of the Chaldeans, he summarized the blessings that would follow (Genesis 12:1-3). Abram was 75 years old at the time. He and his family went to Canaan and from there to Egypt to secure food during a famine. He and his nephew Lot separated upon their return to the promised land. Once more God reaffirmed his covenant with Abram (Genesis 15:1-5). Sarai, Abram”s wife, still had borne no children. She encouraged her husband to marry her Egyptian maidservant, Hagar (16:1-4).

September 30, 2013

Christian Standard

Lesson for October 6, 2013: The Promise of a Future (Genesis 12:1-7; 13; 15; 17:8)

By Sam E. Stone For the past four weeks we have noted highlights from the opening chapters of Genesis, considering the creation, the fall, the flood, and the Tower of Babel. Today our focus centers on Abraham as we see God”s plan for man”s redemption begin to unfold. His initial call from God came while he was still in Mesopotamia (Genesis 12:1-3; see Acts 7:2). After moving to Canaan he and his family then had a sojourn in Egypt, and later separated from Lot. In Genesis 15 Abram (as he was then known) asked God if his servant Eliezer would

September 23, 2013

Christian Standard

Lesson for September 29, 2013: God Scatters the Nations (Genesis 11:1-9)

By Sam E. Stone After Noah and his family came out of the ark, they sought to follow God”s directions (Genesis 8, 9). Chapter 10 is sometimes called “The Table of Nations,” listing where the families of Noah”s sons settled after the flood. The chapter concludes, “These are the clans of Noah”s sons, according to their lines of descent, within their nations” (10:32).   The Setting Genesis 11:1, 2 Noah”s descendants were evidently nomadic people. They moved south and east to the land of Shinar. At some point, they determined to build a city in the region around the area

September 16, 2013

Christian Standard

Lesson for September 22, 2013: An Everlasting Covenant (Genesis 6:9″“9:28)

By Sam E. Stone God created Adam and Eve and placed them in the Garden of Eden. Everything was perfect. All too quickly, however, the first humans sinned (Genesis 3). Soon their son Cain sinned too (Genesis 4). The next chapter of Genesis records the genealogy from Adam to Noah. Chapter 5 concludes, “After Noah was 500 years old, he became the father of Shem, Ham and Japheth” (v. 32). Genesis 6-8 describes the construction of the ark, the gathering of the animals along with his family, and the flood itself. After the waters finally receded (more than a year

September 9, 2013

Christian Standard

Lesson for September 15, 2013: Knowledge of Good and Evil (Genesis 3)

By Sam E. Stone What a difference a day makes! When last week”s text concluded, everything was good in the Garden of Eden. God had evaluated all of his creation and pronounced it “very good.” The one remaining need was to create a suitable companion for Adam. God gave him Eve. All was well. It was not long, however, till things changed. Genesis 3 introduces a new character into the account””the serpent. “Now the serpent was more crafty than any of the wild animals the Lord God had made.” Although the serpent is not identified by name as Satan or

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