Bible Study - Sabbath School Podcast

Sabbath AfternoonRead for This Week’s Study: Mark 4:35-41; Mark 5:21-34; Rom. 5:3-5; Job 19:23-27; Job 23:8-12; Luke 24:13-27; Rom. 8:18, 28Memory Text: “And not only that, but we also glory in tribulations, knowing that tribulation produces perseverance; and perseverance, character; and character, hope. Now hope does not disappoint, because the love of God has been poured out in our hearts by the Holy Spirit who was given to us” (Romans 5:3-5, NKJV).One evening, as the sun dipped over the horizon, a girl was walking home when a dark storm blew in. She quickened her pace, knowing there was still a way to go. A lone raindrop fell on her cheek, then another, and, before she knew it, she was drenched. She started to run until she flung open the door of her home, her father rushing toward her from the front window. As he wrapped a blanket around her shoulders, he asked her, “I saw you just now, in the rain. Why, with every bolt of lightning, did you stop running to look up and smile?” “Oh, I stopped to look up,” she said, “because God was taking my picture!”What is our response when the storms of life come or when we have certain setbacks in our relationship with God? Do we put our head down as the rain pelts upon our backs or do we look up, knowing and trusting that God is there as we turn our face toward Him?This week, we’ll explore some responses we often have when life is challenging. We’ll consider how we might use life’s setbacks to strengthen, not weaken, our most important relationship.*Study this week’s lesson to prepare for Sabbath, June 13.

Further Thought: The Bible often uses agricultural metaphors to describe our spiritual condition. Hosea 10:12 is one example that captures what we have discussed this week: “Sow for yourselves righteousness;Reap in mercy;Break up your fallow ground,For it is time to seek the LORD,Till He comes and rains righteousness on you” (NKJV).We sow, reap, break up the hard soil, and seek God to come close to us. The soil of our hearts must be prepared and ready for the rain (Holy Spirit) to fall. God can give us the desire to prepare the soil, but, ultimately, a relationship with God is a partnership (see Phil. 2:12-13). We have to turn our heads toward Him, reach out to Him, and cling onto Him. Then He works in us to do the rest.One great example of what clinging to God means can be found in these verses: “Your eyes have seen what the LORD did because of Baalpeor: for all the men that followed Baalpeor, the LORD thy God hath destroyed them from among you. But ye that did cleave unto the LORD your God are alive every one of you this day” (Deut. 4:3-4).Discussion Questions:“Lead us not into temptation, but deliver us from evil” (Matt. 6:13). Jesus specifically taught His disciples to pray this way, but do we keep this line of thought in our daily prayers? How regularly do you pray for protection against temptation and sin?How would you explain the precious gift of Christ’s robe of righteousness to a non-Christian or a new believer?How does Christ’s robe of righteousness connect to the message of the sanctuary, which is all about God forgiving and cleaning the repentant sinner? How well do you understand the beauty and richness of this message?Summary: Identifying our sins in response to the Holy Spirit’s promptings and surrendering self in repentance are vital parts of having a thriving relationship with God. Knowing that we are completely forgiven and covered by Jesus’ robe of righteousness is the most transformative experience for a human being. Not only do we feel the weight of sin lifted, but we feel the love of God surround us as we are drawn closer to Him. This binds us to God, strengthens us spiritually, and compels us to love Him with every fiber of our being.

The Most Expensive RobeNice clothing too often defines the rich by worldly standards. Some people say, “I dress this way to express who I am.” But in heaven, everything other than our relationships will fade away (Matt. 6:19-21, NKJV). Our personal identity should be wrapped up in Jesus and His perfect robe of righteousness.Read  the parable in Matthew 22:1-14 that Jesus told to explain this. What messages can you find in this parable?Jesus called the man without a robe “friend,” and despite his lack of response, they must have had a relationship. The man must have known about the robe but had chosen not to wear it. Jesus’ character is perfect and spotless, and He offers this to us “that she should be arrayed in fine linen, clean and white” (Rev. 19:8), “not having spot, or wrinkle, or any such thing” (Eph. 5:27).The white linen “is the righteousness of Christ, His own unblemished character, that through faith is imparted to all who receive Him as their personal Saviour.”--Ellen G. White, Christ’s Object Lessons, p. 310.Adam and Eve wore a white robe of soft light before they sinned; after they sinned, they realized they were naked (Gen. 3:7) and made clothing of fig leaves. Then God replaced their fig leaves with a clothing from animal skins. There was a sacrifice that produced their garment. In a similar way, we accept Jesus’ sacrifice by accepting His robe of righteousness. “Naked and ashamed, they tried to supply the place of the heavenly garments by sewing together fig leaves for covering…. Nothing can man devise to supply the place of his lost robe of innocence. No fig-leaf garment, no worldly citizen dress, can be worn by those who sit down with Christ and angels at the marriage supper of the Lamb. Only the covering which Christ Himself has provided can make us meet to appear in God’s presence. This covering, the robe of His own righteousness, Christ will put upon every repenting, believing soul.”--Ellen G. White, Christ’s Object Lessons, p. 311.Reflect: We should daily choose to be clothed with Jesus’ robe of righteousness. What does this really mean, and how do we do this?

Sufficient GraceWhen we feel the weight of our sin and allow the Holy Spirit to lead us to the foot of the cross, we should ask for God’s forgiveness, knowing that “the LORD is merciful and gracious, slow to anger, and abounding in mercy” (Ps. 103:8, NKJV). This same verse was spoken by God Himself (Exod. 34:6) after His chosen nation had grieved Him.Read Exodus 34:1-10. What crucial truth is found here?The fact that the Lord is merciful and gracious, slow to anger, and abounding in mercy is also the very reason Jesus died on the cross--so that our relationship with God could be made right again.It’s when we are willing to acknowledge and confess our sin; when we say, O, Lord, here I am again … “Be merciful to me a sinner!” (Luke 18:13, NKJV), that Jesus--who has already been working in us and for us with the Holy Spirit before we even call out to Him--sees the weight and takes it from us. Our burdens are lifted at Calvary, and Jesus is surely very near when we come to Him and, even before, seeks us as the Good Shepherd and stands at the door and knocks (Rev. 3:20). Let’s not stay away from the Cross, looking at God from a distance. Let’s run to Jesus and exchange our sins and burdens for His righteousness (Zech. 3:4).Slowly read the following verses. Write in your own words what they tell you about God’s grace toward you: “For the wages of sin is death, but the gift of God is eternal life in Christ Jesus our Lord” (Rom. 6:23, NKJV).“But where sin abounded, grace abounded much more, so that as sin reigned in death, even so grace might reign through righteousness to eternal life through Jesus Christ our Lord” (Rom. 5:20-21, NKJV).“But God demonstrates His own love toward us, in that while we were still sinners, Christ died for us” (Rom. 5:8, NKJV).

Real RepentanceThe secular world bombards us with messages of independence, indulgence, and self-promotion--the opposite of the principles of God’s kingdom. Interestingly, the first words recorded in the Bible by John the Baptist and Jesus were similar. John said, “Repent, for the kingdom of heaven is at hand!” (Matt. 3:1-2, NKJV). Jesus said, “The time is fulfilled, and the kingdom of God is at hand. Repent, and believe in the gospel” (Mark 1:14-15, NKJV; see also Luke 24:46-47). Both Jesus and John called those listening to repentance because the kingdom of heaven was near. Could it be that this same message is equally as relevant to us today?Read Acts 3:18-19. Why is repentance so important in the process of spiritual growth? What is a time of “refreshing”?The kindness and goodness of God lead us to repentance (Rom. 2:4). Repentance involves two steps: (1) sincere pain and sorrow for our sins; and (2) the honest decision to abandon sin. In the Bible, repentance is almost always connected to forgiveness. We genuinely repent; God forgives. It’s that simple (1 John 1:9, Rev. 3:19). “The Lord is not slack concerning His promise, as some count slackness, but is longsuffering toward us, not willing that any should perish but that all should come to repentance” (2 Pet. 3:9, NKJV). As we personally prepare our souls for the Second Coming, God is giving us time to make things right with Him.Jesus suffered, died, and rose so that when we repent, His grace can work a miracle in our lives. Contrary to the world, which tells us we are fine just the way we are, God asks that we turn to Him in repentance and faith (Acts 20:21), placing ourselves fully in His hands so that He can prune and beautifully shape our characters into His likeness, to testify of Him (John 15:2, 8). We then grow and produce fruit in keeping with repentance (Matt. 3:8). “No repentance is genuine that does not work reformation. The righteousness of Christ is not a cloak to cover unconfessed and unforsaken sin; it is a principle of life that transforms the character and controls the conduct.”--Ellen G. White, The Desire of Ages, pp. 555, 556.Repentance leads to life (Acts 11:18) and is a vital part of growing in a relationship with God. In the process of surrender, repentance, and allowing God to prune you, what step is most challenging for you?