The Adult Sunday School

Monday, April 15, 2013

On 4-21-13, 1 Thessalonians 4:13-5:11 will be our Adult Sunday School/Uniform Series/International Sunday School Lesson, herein is my commentary. This lesson is known by some as The Lord Will Return or Living with Hope

The Lord Will Return

Aka

Living with Hope

1 Thessalonians 4:13-5:11

International Sunday School Lesson

April 21, 2013

Commentary

Jed Greenough

There is great consistency within the Bible, in fact you and I rely upon that infallible part of God’s word so that we can better understand what we are studying, how we are to live and what we should expect.

Just as Jesus in His words talked about the end of the age so does Paul as he refers to it as the Day of the Lord. Paul is talking to the Thessalonians but it applies very clearly to us because that day has not yet come. I know that is about as obvious a statement as one could make but just like the Thessalonians people today fear dying but Christians need reminding that they have hope unlike the world.

Our faith rests upon Christ’s resurrection because even if we were to die like Christ we will be resurrected. When? Paul calls it the Day of the Lord and Jesus in John 6 referred not it just once but four times as the “last day.”

Jesus told us in Matthew 24 that “all the peoples of the earth will mourn when they see the Son of Man coming on the clouds of heaven, with power and great glory.And he will send his angels with a loud trumpet call, and they will gather his elect from the four winds, from one end of the heavens to the other.” And Paul said “According to the Lord’s word, we tell you that we who are still alive, who are left until the coming of the Lord, will certainly not precede those who have fallen asleep. For the Lord himself will come down from heaven, with a loud command, with the voice of the archangel and with the trumpet call of God, and the dead in Christ will rise first. After that, we who are still alive and are left will be caught up together with them in the clouds to meet the Lord in the air. And so we will be with the Lord forever”.

Paul said we should encourage one another with this news. My goodness, talk about an understatement! But just as Paul had to remind the Thessalonians we need reminding of our hope and the remaining reason for his stressing it was because of the big one Jesus stressed in Matthew 24 and the one I stressed in my 3-17-13 commentary --DECEIT. It is referred to in today’s scripture as “peace and safety”.

People have been fed a reinvented gospel that lulls people into a false sense of security that Jesus clearly warned against as does Paul here.

So being aware of that you can be on guard and prepared; confident that when He comes you’ll be ready and waiting!

For Discussion:

1. Read Matthew 24

2. Read my commentary for the March 17 lesson on this blog

3. Discuss how the world and those in it will be surprised when this happens but Christians should not be

4. Discuss the consistency of God’s word

5. Share other examples from the Bible where a matter can be studied in different places within the Bible

6. Discuss the fear and the hope

7. Share examples of those though near death sharing their hope

8. Discuss things that Christians should be aware of similar to this “peace and safety”

4-28-13: The Lord Will Triumph aka Hope Comes from God’s Grace 2 Thessalonians 2:1-4, 8-17 or 2:1-3, 9-17

5-5-13: Living Hope 1 Peter 1:3-16 or 1:3-12

5-12-13: Sure Hope aka Equipped with Hope 2 Peter 1:2-15, 20, 21 or 1:4-14

5-19-13: Active Hope aka Hope through Stewardship 1 Peter 4:1-11

Tuesday, April 9, 2013

On 4-14-13, Acts 2:1-16 or 2:1-13 will be our Adult Sunday School/Uniform Series/International Sunday School Lesson, herein is my commentary. This lesson is known by some as The Lord Sends the Spirit or The Holy Spirit Comes

The Lord Sends the Spirit

Aka

The Holy Spirit Comes

Acts 2:1-16 or 2:1-13

International Sunday School Lesson

April 14, 2013

Commentary

Jed Greenough

“…about three thousand were added to their number that day.” Acts 2:41a

The impact that the event from today’s Scripture had was a giant jump start to the beginning of the church. Acts 2:43 tells us, “Everyone was filled with awe at the many wonders and signs performed by the apostles.”

Just like last week when I talked about the dramatic lengths God will go to in showing His purpose so on that day was this demonstrated.

God had just sacrificed His son and as we celebrated last week raised Him from the grave. News such as this must go viral to use our modern vernacular for what happens so often today with the Iinternet.

In dramatic fashion all those from foreign lands were able to hear the Good News and when they returned to their own lands spread what they had discovered.

It is really amazing to consider isn’t it that a story that no man would make up about His God could be spread in a manner that he wouldn’t think up either?

There were no years of fledgling missionary work that would slowly add to their number but one moment accomplished it in an orderly fashion. Plenty of hard work would follow but the spark was lit not in foreign land but in God’s Holy City, the city of David amongst the Jewish people who had put His son to death mere days before.

Just as the Jews were celebrating that day the giving of the law to them through Moses so should we celebrate that day at Pentecost when God started a covenant with us. Just as the Jews were told then that day with Moses after being freed from bondage that they were to be a holy nation and a kingdom of priests, so should we be as we spread the good news that we have been freed from death. If not with the dramatic fashion of speaking in the language of whoever we meet then with the passion that the man of action not words Peter displayed!

For Discussion:

1. Discuss why the crowd reacted the way they did.

2. Discuss why one would make a statement about the disciples being drunk if they understood in their own language what they were saying. What would make them think they were drunk?

3. Discuss the dramatic things of God you may have experienced.

4. Discuss speaking in tongues today in comparison to this.

5. Discuss this large conversion of people.

6. Discuss the tongues of fire.

7. Discuss how many react when they are made fun of for professing Christ just as these disciples.

4-21-13: The Lord Will Return aka Living with Hope 1 Thessalonians 4:13-5:11