The Adult Sunday School

Sunday, October 27, 2013

On 11-3-13, Exodus 3:7-17 will be our Adult Sunday School/Uniform Series/International Sunday School Lesson herein is my commentary. This lesson is known by some as God Prepares for Deliverance

God Prepares for Deliverance

Exodus 3:7-17

International Sunday School Lesson

November 3, 2013

Commentary

Jed Greenough

If you had to, how would you tell someone who you are? You would tell them your name. But what does that tell them about you? How would you go about doing that so that someone knew who you really are?

That is a tough one because you have to come to know someone. To really know who someone is takes time. So when I see this scripture for today I notice how many words there are in giving Moses an answer to the question, “What is His name?”

Think about it this way. Do you have someone in your life with who, they or you, can simply say when calling on the phone or when walking through a door, “It’s me!”?

If you do, that person or you instantly know who is on the other end or in that space with you. If you don’t have that connection with someone its meaningless.

Yes, this is a bit of an oversimplification with regard to God and He is anything but simple. As we have come to understand His “name” we consider the factors of God. He refers to Himself as I Am and we would say He is. According to the NIV the Hebrew for His name can also be, “He will be”. So God’s name is that He always has been, is, and will be. I like the “heaviness” of all that when you consider His name and I find it fitting.

So did they, the people of Israel, know who God was? My gut tells me that they were not on an “It’s me” basis. Thus this explanation, “Say to the Israelites, The Lord, the God of your fathers—the God of Abraham, the God of Isaac and the God of Jacob—has sent me to you.” Genesis 3:15a

I am further convinced of this, that they didn’t know Him as “I Am” in their lives because He went on to tell Moses that this name was how He was “to be remembered from generation to generation.” Genesis 3:15b

I think it rather akin to Jacob last week as I professed my belief that though Jacob maybe knew about God because of Abraham his grandfather and Isaac his father he didn’t have a relationship with God and neither have I felt did the people of Israel have much of one.

I believe we see this in the behavior of the people of Israel from the moment they face the first peril at the crossing of the sea as Pharaoh pursued them to their full transformation into God’s people as time went by. As time passed then they began to know who God was.

Can we claim to know who God is? Do we have an, “It’s Me!” relationship with Him? If not I guess we better get to work to know Him better. Without knowing Him well enough how can we be very effective in the work of the gospel?

For Discussion:

1. Discuss the figurative language found in verses 7-9 so it is understood that God wasn’t just now finally hearing the cries of the people or just now finally concerned.

2. Discuss that God told Abram about this period of enslavement found in Genesis 15:13-14

3. After reading the doubt Moses expresses about himself in 3:11, find and discuss three other verses where he continues to be hesitant.

4. There are three words very closely related to “I Am” do not miss them. They are “I will be” found in verse 12. They are worthy of a concordance search to see when and how God uses them in the Bible from beginning to end.

5. In verse 12 God is not just referring to Moses when He says “you will worship” but to the people of Israel. Because they will find themselves there worshiping Him and not still in Egypt.

6. Find and discuss when God first promised this land mentioned in verse 17.

7. I think a great commentary/lesson/sermon on today’s scripture could be made by combining it with The Great Commission found in Matthew 28:16-20. Discuss the parallels.

Upcoming Lessons

11-3-13 God Prepares for Deliverance Exodus 3:7-17

11-10-13 Beginning of Passover Exodus 12:1-14

11-17-13 Beginning of Freedom Exodus 14:13, 14, 21-30 or 14:21-30

11-24-13 Beginning of the Tabernacle Exodus 40:16-30, 34, 38

12-1-13 The Angel Foretells Jesus’ Birth Luke 1:26-40

Sunday, October 20, 2013

On 10-27-13, Genesis 28:1a, 10-22 will be our Adult Sunday School/Uniform Series/International Sunday School Lesson herein is my commentary. This lesson is known by some as The Blessing Passes to Jacob

The Blessing Passes to Jacob

Genesis 28:1a, 10-22

International Sunday School Lesson

October 27, 2013

Commentary

Jed Greenough

All right let’s just get it over with, a stone for a pillow! Yep, that’s Jacob. There I go superficially making assumptions again about these major characters of the Bible but I don’t feel that I am teaching an absolute, which is something I usually try to avoid, but rather in this case an opinion so I don’t feel too much trepidation in making my next statement.

I don’t feel that Jacob was very complex but rather a simple or base man. Yes, there was his request of Esau’s birthright in exchange for some stew (Genesis 25) which certainly establishes him as an opportunist if nothing more. There was the playing along with his mother’s scheme to take Esau’s blessing (Genesis 27). Look ahead in Genesis and I believe you’ll see more examples. But most importantly in my opinion, despite all Jacob must have heard about his dad and granddad and the most magnificent experiences they had in their receiving their promises and communications from God, Jacob had yet to have a relationship with God himself!

So from today’s scripture there are many things that you and I and Jacob and God all get from this that is shared with us today.

First is that we can inherit some things but a relationship with God is not one of them.

Another thing that I am drawing an assumption about based on this and other evidence in the Bible, even though this example comes from a dream, is that the activity of angels is an ongoing, ever present, continuous task that they are engaged in here among us. This format isn’t one where I will do all the groundwork citing examples of their activity but check it out and you will see that they are protecting, engaging, battling. You might not know it but you could be entertaining one when you are taking care of a stranger (Hebrews 13:2). All these examples are Biblical and therefore proven and I think comforting but not to be made more of than what it is as they are servants of God and the goal is still God’s glory not theirs.

Finally, I am confident we can also see that God wanted this relationship with Jacob and also demonstrates that He wants to be worshiped.

I find it encouraging whenever I read these examples and I read of the love that God had for these examples in the Bible such as Jacob. Why, because I know that I am more like those such as Jacob than I am other more inspiring characters of the Bible. I might have used a woolen bag or something fashioned from an animal’s hide for my pillow but I can be pretty simple too. In the end though I know God is patient, puts up with a lot of stupid activity but still forgives me and wants me to worship Him still.

For Discussion:

1. If you explore commentary on the stone pillow you will see all the hoops people attempt to jump through to explain it away due to its seeming absurdity from using symbolism to original language meanings. There was one stone; it was used as a pillow. This one stone he had placed under his head was set up as a pillar. Discuss if you wish but don’t get lost in it!

2. Discuss examples of angelic activity in the Bible

3. Discuss examples of angelic activity among us now

4. Now discuss how too much attention or glory is given to angels

5. Discuss whether you believe Jacob had a relationship at this point with God

6. Discuss the role of parents but how one cannot truly inherit a relationship with God

7. Discuss why the Lord needed to appear to Jacob

8. Discuss Jacob saying, “If God will be with me…then the Lord will be my God.”