Assignment for October 3, 2018

Psalm 1

vs. 1- the progression into evil:  walk.... stand.... sit

What can these words stand for in everyday life? 
What do they refer to in practical terms for you?

Notice the wording:  Blessed is the one who does NOT do this

vs. 2- delight. 
What does that word mean to you?  
What are some of the things that you really delight in?  
God wants to give us that same level of passion toward His Word.

meditate- to think about, ponder, chew on, reflect, consider, mull over. 

The goal of Christian meditation is not empty ourselves but to fill ourselves up with the truth of God's Word. Meditation goes beyond merely knowing facts about the Bible. It is where the Bible becomes real to us personally. General knowledge is transformed into specific truth just for you and me. This will bring about spiritual growth.

day and night- How do we do this?

 1.  Day: Ask the Lord to give you a small portion (a verse or less) of scripture to meditate on throughout the day. Keep using this same verse each day until you have "squeezed all the juice" out of it. Expect there to be "windows of pause" in your day. Times when you have a few seconds to spare. They are always there but we don't always see them as opportunities. When you find one, seize the opportunity and reflect on this verse. It doesn't take much to keep a verse rolling around in our hearts all day. 
 2.  Night: Make reflecting on that verse the last thing you do before you go to sleep. This not only sets the stage for a good nights' sleep with God in charge of your dreams, it will also help us to wake up with God clearly on our mind.

Joshua 1:6-9
Joshua was called to lead. To do so he had to be strong and courageous. How was he to do it? The key was to meditate on the Word day and night. Prosperity and success would naturally follow him if he did so.

It is the same with each of us. We have all been put here for a reason. The path to success is the same as Joshua's. If we meditate on the Word day and night, we will have the things we need to complete the work God gave us to do.

You don't have to be a monk to meditate "day and night." It is a mindset and a heart-set that God can help each of us obtain.

vs. 3- a fruitful tree planted by the water. This is God's desire for us.

Jeremiah 17:8

Assignment for September 19th

1.  We did not finish the last 2 points from the last lesson so we will begin with them. Look up the references and write down some thoughts.

How are we sanctified?

John 17:17

Ro. 15:16

Hebrews 13:12

Sanctification is both instantaneous and progressive. This will take some thought, prayer and reflection to understand but it is HUGELY important that we do understand it.

Hebrews 2:10-11

2.  As we continue to explore our identity in Christ, we will look at our position as priests.

Look in the dictionary, Bible, study Bible and find the definition and duties of priests.
Hint: we did this when we studied Ezra. 😉

3.  Lookup these scriptures and write down some thoughts:

1 Peter 2:4-10
Revelation 1:4-6

Assignment for September 5, 2018

My Identity in Christ

We will discuss the scriptures listed below. Please look them up and jot down some thoughts, ESPECIALLY if they speak personally to you.

It is very important for us as believers to have a clear understanding of who we are in Christ. We must see ourselves as God sees us.

Once I have received Christ as my personal Savior I am born-again. A great transformation has taken place. I was dead and now I am alive. I was blind but now I see. I was a sinner but now I am a saint.

2 Cor. 5:17

In the NIV Bible, the word “saints” is used 45 times.

“Saints” are sanctified ones

The Greek word for the noun “saints” is hagios- (#40 in Strong’s concordance): the core meaning is "different." The technical meaning is "different from the world because like the Lord." It means to be set apart by God or for God, holy, sacred. It means we have a "likeness of nature with the Lord."

Hagios is the word used in “Holy” Spirit

The verb form of hagios translated “sanctify” or “make holy”- hagiazo (#37 in Strong’s Concordance) means "to make holy, consecrate, sanctify; to dedicate, separate"

“Sanctify” is used 15 times in NIV and “made holy” 7 times.

All these English words come from the same Greek root word so we must look at them as a group.

The Bible calls every believer a saint:

Eph. 1:1

1 Cor 1:2

Being a saint involves 2 parts: 
Separation FROM something and dedication TO something else.

Eph. 2:1-5

What is the difference between transgressions and sins?

How are we sanctified?

John 17:17

Ro. 15:16

Hebrews 13:12

Sanctification is both instantaneous and progressive. This will take some thought, prayer and reflection to understand but it is HUGELY important that we do understand it.

Hebrews 2:10-11